Preventative Law by Martin Segal

Segal covers the basics needed in the course of business. Most legal analysis is post-hoc in that we must examine the past: prior case law, the laws passed by legislature, and the facts as represented by the parties. What steps can we take prior to events, so as to increase the odds of a court finding in our favor?

The next book in this sequence would cover the methods of compliance; what can we do to prevent situations from ever going to court?

Contracts are contracts because they contain enforceable promises, and absent some overriding public policy, those promises are to be enforced. 'Where each of the parties is content to take the risk of its turning out in a particular way' why should one be released from the contract, if there were no misrepresentations or other want of fair dealing? Promising to pay damages of a fixed amount, the parties normally have a much better sense of what damages can occur. Courts must be reluctant to override their judgment."

-- Avoiding Contract Liability

There are four major ways an offeree can skillfully do this ( make an offer legally irrevocable ), each of which shifts the decision-making power from the offeror to the offeree...
1. Create an option ( pay something to the offeror to keep the offer open )

-- Creating the Contract