Practical Insights
Practical insights for the moments when contracts meet reality.
Contracts often reveal their true character only when a conflict arises. What may look balanced on paper can shift significantly under pressure, often to the disadvantage of the party that overlooked or misjudged a legal or commercial risk.
The articles on this page are based on my daily work in contract design and litigation. A particular focus is on mechanical and plant engineering. In this sector, legal risks often become especially visible: in complex project chains, cross-border contractual relationships and disputes with substantial economic consequences.
The articles address questions that arise again and again in practice: Where are the legal breaking points of a contract? When do they become dangerous in the course of a project? And what can be done before commercial tension turns into litigation?
Each article combines legal substance with the perspective of a lawyer who does not only draft and review contracts, but also conducts the disputes that arise from them.
These articles cannot replace individual legal advice. They do, however, show what matters in practice and where contracts, projects and conflicts should be examined more closely.
LATEST ARTICLES

Degree of completion of the work
The standards relating to the right to refuse acceptance (Section 640 (1) sentence 2 BGB, Section 12 (3) VOB/B) state that acceptance of the work may not be refused due to insignificant defects. There is no statement on the required degree of completion of the work as a prerequisite for acceptance.
However, the question of what degree of completion the work must have reached in order to be considered ready for acceptance is very important, particularly in the case of plant construction, which is usually very complex.

Major deficiency in plant engineering
Answering the question of whether there is a significant defect is very difficult, especially in often very complex plant construction. The absence of major defects is the decisive prerequisite for acceptance. The latter has considerable legal and practical significance: the start of the warranty periods is regularly linked to this. In addition, the due date of a considerable part of the agreed remuneration generally depends on acceptance.

Formal acceptance under building law
Particularly in the case of complex (plant) construction projects, the contracting parties often agree – usually on the basis of the VOB/B – to carry out a so-called formal acceptance. The following article deals with the question of what such a formal acceptance is actually all about.
BGH NEWS
Find out about the latest case law of the Federal Court of Justice here
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