^1. This proverb appears on a medallion struck to celebrate the introduction of the new Dutch Civil Code in 1992. This proverb, which means the basis of justice is founded on (good) faith, trust, trustworthiness, is derived from Cicero, , De officiis, 1, 7, 23.Google Scholar

^2. Not all private law was codified in 1838. Labour law and agricultural tenancy law date from the early years of this century. And even more recent are the provisions on tenancy law and hire purchase law.

^3. See Hartkamp, A. S., ‘International Unification and Codification (and Recodification) of Civil Law, The Dutch Experience’, in Questions of Civil Law Codification (1990) p. 67Google Scholar et seq., and by the same author, ‘Das neue niederländische Bürgerliche Gesetzbuch aus europäischer Sicht’, RabelsZ (1993) p. 664 et seq. and van der Velden, F. J. A. and Florijn, N. A., ‘Harmonisation of Private Law Rules between Civil and Common Law Jurisdictions’, in Hondius, E. H. and Steenhoff, G. J. W., eds., Netherlands Reports to the Thirteenth International Congress of Comparative Law (1990) p. 43 et seq.Google Scholar

^4. For a more detailed account of the revision process of the Civil Code, see Hartkamp, A. S., ‘Civil Code Revision in the Netherlands 1947–1992’, in Haanappel, P. P. C. and Mackaay, E., New Netherlands Civil Code, Patrimonial Law (1990).Google Scholar This collection contains an English and French translation of the NBW. See also, Hondius, E., ‘Das neue niederländische Zivilgesetzbuch’, Archiv für die civilistische Praxis (1991) p. 378 et seq.;Google ScholarIoriatti, E., ‘Il nuovo codice civile dei Paesi Bassi fra soluzioni originali e circolazione dei modelli’, Rivista diritto civile (1992) p. 117 et seq.;Google ScholarHartkamp, , ‘Das neue …’, loc. cit. n. 3, p. 664 et seq.Google Scholar

^5. Compare the criticism of Tallon, D., ‘The New Dutch Civil Code in a Comparative Perspective – a French Viewpoint’, Eur. Rev. Private Law (1993) p. 189 et seq.,Google Scholar in particular p. 192 ‘…the price of acrobatic juggling of the articles, sections, chapters and titles’ in which the contents of Book 3 are described as ‘rather heterogeneous’. As regards the NBW as a whole and its layered structure, Tallon remarks ‘… that a French lawyer (and perhaps lawyers from other countries) will be surprised by this presentation and may take some time to find their way around the NBW’ (p. 193).

^6. See van Rossum, M. M., ‘The Concept of “Dwaling” under the New Civil Code Compared to the English Doctrine of Misrepresentation’, 39 NILR (1992) pp. 303–331.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

^7. It should be noted that the legal concept of trust is unknown in Dutch internal law. As a result of developments in private international law and in French legislation, criticism of this gap has become more strident in recent years and there are now calls for the concept of trust to be regulated by statute.

^8. This arrangement is unique in Europe. It was deliberately decided to create an institution that had no equivalent elsewhere, cf., Hartkamp, , ‘Das neue …’, loc. cit. n. 3, p. 677.Google Scholar

^9. For further particulars, see Bloembergen, A. R.,‘Schadenersatz im neuen niederländischen Zivilgesetzbuch, Versicherungsrecht’, in 25 Jahre KarlsruherForum, Jubiläumausgabe (1983) p. 41 et seq.Google Scholar

^10. For a more detailed account, see Will, M. R., ‘Einige Bemerkungen zur Reform der Haftung für gefährliche Sachen und Stoffe im künftigen Zivilgesetzbuch der Niederlande’, Kwartaalbericht Nieuw BW (1987) no. 4, p. 144;Google ScholarHondius, E. H. and Braams, W. T., Auf dem Wege zu einem neuen euroäischen Haftungsrecht, Der Beitrag der Niederlande, Vorträge, Reden und Berichte aus dem Europa-Institut (1989);Google Scholar and Hartkamp, A. S., ‘Das neue …’, loc. cit. n. 3,Google Scholar who emphasises the strong French influence on the new law of liability. I would also refer to Spier, J. and Sterk, C. H. W. M., ‘Rope-Dancing Dutch Tort Law’, Schriftenreihe deutscher Jura-Studenten inGenf (1993)Google Scholar and Hondius, E. H. and van Dam, C. C., Deliktsrecht in Europa (Chr.v.Bar,) Länderbericht Niederlande (1993) p. 5Google Scholar (which included a non-authentic German translation of Section 6.1.10 on compensation and Title 6.3 on tort).

^11. See the dissertation in Dutch (with a German summary) of Jongeneel, R. H. C., De Wet algemene voorwaarden en het AGB-Gesetz (1991).Google Scholar

^12. See my criticism: Wessels, B., Beroep, bedrijf en ondememing (Profession, business and undertaking), Inaugural lecture, Free University, Amsterdam, 1988.Google Scholar

^13. The justification for a separate Handelsgezetsbuch is also being debated in Germany. See Schmidt, K.,‘Bernerkungen und Vorschläge zur Uberarbeitung des Handelsgestzbuches’, Der Betrieb (1994) p. 515 et seq.Google Scholar

^14. For a more detailed account, see Hartkamp, A. S., ‘Judicial Discretion under the New Civil Code of the Netherlands’, 40 AJCL (1992) p. 551 et seq.Google Scholar

^15. See my dissertation Natuurlijke verbintenissen. Civiel-en fiscaalrechtelijke beschouwingen over rechtens niet-afdwingbare verbintenissen (Natural obligations: civil and fiscal law deliberations on obligations that are unenforceable in law) (1988) (with a French abstract).

^16. For the lay public, the NBW was explained in short TV programmes broadcast from the autumn of 1991 onwards, in an 8-part TV and radio series for business people, in a free publication prepared by the Chamber of Commerce for business people (with a survey of the main changes, November 1991; 650,000 copies (population of the Netherlands: around 15 million), and in a Law Week held by the Bar and the Notarial Society at the end of January 1992, in which many tens of thousands of private individuals visited the offices of the participating firms on their open days. It is interesting to note that in January 1992 16,000 postage stamps containing two passages from the text of the new code and bearing the words ‘new Civil Code 1/1/92’ were issued.

^17. Cf., Pichler, J. W. et al. , Renaissance der Idee der Kodifikation: das neue Niederländische Bürgerliche Gesetzbuch 1992 (1991).Google Scholar

^18. See the texts of Haanappel and Mackaay, op. cit. n. 4.

^19. Besides the works previously mentioned in the footnotes, see Einführung in das Niederländische Schuldrecht in Archiv für die Civilistische Praxis (1991) pp. 396–432, with contributions by A. S. Hartkamp (Rechtsgeschäfte und Verträge) and J. B. M. Vranken (‘Das Recht der unerlaubten Handlung, Schadenersatz- und Bereicherungsrecht’), Struycken, A. V. M., L'évolution contemporaine du droit des biens, Journées René Savatier, Publications de la Faculté de droit et des sciences sociales de Poitiers, Tome 19 (1991) p. 83 et seq.,Google Scholar and Micke, W., ‘Das Nieuw Burgerlijk Wetboek aus deutscher Sicht’, Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Burgerlijk Recht (1992/1991) pp. 18–20.Google Scholar

^20. For a brief account of the changes in company law and securities law and the revision of the Russian Civil Code, see Frenkel, W. G. in International Company and Commercial Law Review (1994) p. C-57 et seq.Google Scholar

^21. Drobnig, U., ‘Das neue niederländische bürgerliche Gesetzbuch aus vergleichender und deutscher Sicht’, Eur. Rev. Private Law (1993) p. 171 et seq.Google Scholar

^22. See in this connection Mincke, loc. cit. n. 19, p. 18 et seq.

^23. For a systematic description of the law of obligations under the common law compared with the rules in the NBW, see the twin dissertations (in English) by Samuel, G. and Rinkes, J., Contractual and Non-contractual Obligations in English Law (1992).Google Scholar

^24. Cf., van Dunné, J. M., ‘The Use of Comparative Law by the Legislator in the Netherlands’, in Jessurun d'Oliveira, H. U., ed., Netherlands Reports to the XIth International Congress of Comparative Law (1982) p. 36 et seq.Google Scholar

^25. Zweigert, K. and Kötz, H., Introduction to Comparative Law (1988) Vol. I, p. 105.Google Scholar

^26. Taken from G. H. Samuel, and forming part of the dissertation referred to in n. 23 supra.

^27. See, inter alia, Remien, O., ‘Illusion und Realität europäischen Privatrechts’, Juristen Zeitung (1992) p. 277et seq.;Google ScholarMüller-Graf, P. C., ‘Europäische Gemeinschaftsrecht und Privatrecht’, Neue Juristische Wochenschrift (1993) p. 13 et seq.;Google Scholar and E. Hondius and M. Strome, ‘European Private Law, Eur. Rev. Private Law (1993) p. 1 et seq. (a German and French version of this article are also included in this journal).

^28. The Association Agreement concerning the European Economic Space came into force on 1 January 1994, thereby creating a common market between the EU countries and the EFTA countries (Austria, Finland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Sweden). This means that the fundamental principles of free movement of goods, persons, services and capital have now been recognised in all these countries and that the basis has been established for the further integration of patrimonial law.

^29. Koopmans, T., ‘The Birth of European Law. At the Crossroads of Legal Traditions’, 39 AJCL (1991) p. 493 et seq.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

^30. Lando, O., ‘Principles of European Contract Law’, RabelsZ (1992) p. 261 et seq.,Google Scholar and in 40 AJCL (1992) p. 573 et seq.; Gandolfi, G., ‘Pour un code européen des contrats’, Revue trimestrielle de droit civile (1992) p. 707 et seq.;Google Scholar and the contributions in Stein, P., ed., Incontro di studio su Il futoro codice europeo dei contratti (1993).Google Scholar

^31. Lando, O., ‘Is codification Needed in Europe? Principles of European Contract Law and the Relationship to Dutch Law’, Eur. Rev. Private Law (1993) p. 157 et seq.Google Scholar I would also refer to a collection edited by Hartkamp, A. S. et al. , which will shortly be published: Towards a European Civil Code (1994).Google Scholar