No Contract is an Island

Abstract

Contract liability and liability under a contract can be seen as two separate concepts. The former covers liabilities arising under contract law; the latter covers all the actual and potential liabilities that can arise because of a contract. In venn diagram terms, the latter always includes the former, but the former does not always include the latter. For example, “contract liability”, “tort liability” and “statute liability” are separate areas of law that can (and probably will) sit within “liability under a contract”; whereas “tort liability” and “statute liability” do not fit within “contract liability”.