In order to handle the economic consequences of the COVID-19-pandemic, the German legislator has issued a number of specific rules for certain contracts for a limited period of time. The fact that legislation saw the need for such measures raises the question whether established German contract law is not sufficient to deal with the consequences of a large-scale crisis. This contribution therefore outlines in a first step how the rules of general contract law in Germany apply to contracts affected by the COVID-19-crisis. The second step is dedicated to an analysis of the interaction between the particular rules within the emergency regulation and the general contract law and will conclude with some first tentative answers to the general question concerning the reasons to amend German law by the Corona Contract Law legislation.

INTRODUCTION

The COVID-19-pandemic has so far caused unprecedented, far-reaching State intervention into the economy in many, if not all, States around the world. However, a complete public law takeover of the whole economy has not taken place. This results in the fact that COVID-19 has become a stress test also to established contract law: the consequences of the pandemic and of State interventions to contractual relationships have to be dealt with by contract law. However, many national legislators seem not to sufficiently trust the established contract law rules and their application by courts. They have been and still are enacting specific emergency legislation for (all or certain) contracts. Sometimes supervisory authorities are also stepping in to clarify the regulatory framework.

The German legislator has also become active and established some special rules of Corona Contract Law for a limited period of time and only for some particular situations: with the Act of 27 March 2020 a new Article 240 of the Einführungsgesetz zum Bürgerlichen Gesetzbuch (Introductory Act to the German Civil Code (Introductory Act)) was enacted. This Article 240 contains a moratorium for payments on so-called wesentliche Dauerschuldverhältnisse (essential long-term contracts) in favour of severely affected consumers and micro-entrepreneurs (Art 240 §1 Introductory Act), a ban on termination for delayed payments under real estate rental and lease contracts (Art 240 §2 Introductory Act), as well as statutory deferrals, termination bans and other changes for interest and redemption payments for consumer credit agreements including mortgages (Art 240 §3 Introductory Act).