Preface

The regulation of contracts is nowadays a matter of transnational concern. Countries in the Gulf have made great efforts to diversify their economies by, among others, enhancing and transnationalising their legal systems. Qatari contract regulation has gone through several phases of development and modernisation in its relatively short history, starting from its first civil code in the early 1970s that was inspired by the Egyptian civil code of 1948. Although this book focuses on Qatar’s current civil code, as well as related legislation, the authors are not oblivious to the fact that a big part of the economy is cross-border in nature and by implication, most of the pertinent contracts are governed by foreign laws or (soft law) principles, such as the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts. There is equally an interplay between the influence, or the remnants, of Egyptian private law and the infusion of Anglo-American law as a result of the influx of foreign law firms in Qatar and their dominance in the market. Still, the regulation of contracts by Qatari law is substantial and most contracts entered by state entities are governed, to one degree or another, by this law. What is more, the sustained growth and investment in Gulf legal systems by GCC nations is slowly contributing to a diverse, pluralistic, rich and user-friendly body of private and commercial law that is attractive for global end-users.

Other Information

Published in: Contract Law of Qatar
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
See chapter on publisher's website: https://dx.doi.org/10.1017/9781009052009.001