CATHARINE MACMILLANMISTAKESIN CONTRACT LAWMISTAKES IN CONTRACT LAWIt is a matter of some difficulty for the English lawyer to predict the effect of amisapprehension upon the formation of a contract.The common law doctrine ofmistake is a confused one,with contradictory theoretical underpinnings andseemingly irreconcilable cases.This book explains the common law doctrinethrough an examination of the historical development of the doctrine in Englishlaw.Beginning with an overview of contractual mistakes in Roman law,the bookexamines how theories of mistake were received at various points into Englishcontract law from Roman and civil law sources.These transplants,made for prag-matic rather than principled reasons,combined in an uneasy manner with the pre-existing English contract law.The book also examines the substantive changesbrought about in contractual mistake by the Judicature Act 1873 and the fusion oflaw and equity.Through its historical examination of mistake in contract law,thebook provides not only insights into the nature of innovation and continuitywithin the common law but also the fate oflegal transplants.Mistakes in Contract LawCatharine MacMillan・HARTOXFORD AND PORTLAND,OREGON2010