Реформа облигационог права у Немачкој
The Reform of the German Civil Code

Summary/Abstract: The Yugoslav law tradition is closely combined with the German one. Of from that it is also for Yugoslav lawyers interesting to attain information about changes in the right of the European neighbours and partners. With the 1.1.2002 enacted Law on the modernization of the Obligation law the German Civil code was modified comprehensively in key areas. Reason for the changes were a line of European guidelines that regulates the consumer purchase, the acceleration of the money transfers and the electronic market. The German legislator did not limit in this case to the pure conversion of these guidelines, but it resumed reform attempts, which already come from the early eighties. The changes concern basically the limitation regulations, the General part of the obligation law and the purchase and working (not labour) contract. The limitation law and the regulations on the results of erroneous services at purchase contracts were reformed comprehensively. In the limitation law a short general limitation period (three years) was introduced, that begins to run at the end of the year, in that the creditor receives knowledge of its claim and the claim opponent. Next to that long periods of time, which run independently from the knowledge, are valid. In the regulations for the course of the limitation period the interruption of the period was pushed back. In the new regulations mostly the expiry of the period is only temporary influenced by some facts. The General part of the Obligation Law was restructured completely. The changes are less contents-related. Rather demands from the science and the development of the jurisdiction were included and some special laws were integrated into the Civil Code. The results of mistakes of the purchased thing were fitted now into the general system of the bad performance. The reduction of the purchase price remains as an only purchase-particular regulation. Unfortunately the German Civil Code reform is not based on the developing European contract law consistently. The future will show whether the changes, which were enacted very rapidly, will prove themselves in the practice.

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