The Law Relating to Contracts with Governments and Public Authorities

Abstract

The topic of government contracts is an elusive one, because in most respects government contracts are not a distinct legal type of contract. Certainly the question of validity or enforcement of government contracts, the performance of which might infringe on the due exercise of some statutory or other power, is one special feature of government contracts, and it will be dealt with in this article. Again, the question of the capacity to make particular contracts is of especial importance in the case of governments and public authorities, and mention will be made of that question. For the most part, however, the legal considerations are the same as those attaching to any contract. The range of contracts which governments make is obviously a wide one, but the contracts within the range are basically similar to private contracts.