Marital Agreements and Private Autonomy in Comparative Perspective is based on_x000D_ a research project of the same title. In its Preface, the Editor Jens Sherpe writes: "[I]t was apparent that the legal position on marital agreements in England and Wales contrasted starkly with that of the continental European jurisdictions, which seemed to merit a comparative study". Indeed, in recent years, the legal status of marital agreements in England and Wales has been criticised and debated on. The courts in the U.K. have a wide discretion over the determination of the financial consequences of a divorce, and marital agreements made between spouses over such matters are not enforceable in themselves. In contrast, many of the continental European jurisdictions have more definite default matrimonial property regimes and also permit marital agreements to be enforced. The topic was made part of the Law Commission of England andWales' Tenth Programme of Law Reform.

Company law is extremely complex, in part because it is founded upon a substratum of statute, regulatory law, contract, tort law, equity and more. Researchers tend each to focus upon one of the main areas of inquiry, these being corporate governance, securities regulation, and corporate liability. Many basic concepts relevant to the study of company law remain contested. Debate rumbles on about matters such as separate legal personality, the boundaries of the company, corporate purpose, limited liability, veil-piercing, and so on. This review focuses upon the question of how the company is to be viewed in theoretical terms. “Theoretical” means, in this context, abstracting from less significant details and concentrating upon the company’s most important elements and functions, and upon the way that it operates in the commercial world.