Assignment of Contracts, Contractual Rights and Obligations: A Re-Engineering Tool in International Business Transactions

Abstract

The freedom of parties to contract on any lawful term has long been recognized and entrenched in both Anglo-American and Continental legal systems. This freedom is well extended to cover even the right of parties to ‘re-engineer’ their contractual positions, rights, obligations in order to maximize their economic or business interest. In this work, we seek to examine the role of assignment as a vital re-engineering tool in international business transactions. This is done from the standpoint of Anglo-American and Continental legal systems, and private international law instruments. We conclude by holding that international business transactions, particularly those based on the assignment of rights or obligations would achieve tremendous socio-economic impact, if they were approached with a solid understanding of the legal and business culture of all the parties involved.