851-0742-00L Contract Design I
| Semester | Autumn Semester 2022 |
| Lecturers | A. Stremitzer |
| Periodicity | yearly recurring course |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Comment | This course is taught by Professor Alexander Stremitzer (https://laweconbusiness.ethz.ch/group/professor/stremitzer.html). Using practical examples, you will learn the connections between economic contract theory, contract law, and contract drafting. Further, you will apply this knowledge to practical cases to analyze contracts, recognize contractual problems, and develop suitable solutions. It is NOT a legal drafting class focused on contractual language. You can find all course materials and the most recent announcements on Moodle. Please log in to Moodle using your ETH or UZH credentials. Then search for "Contract Design I (851-0742-00L; Fall 2022)" and enroll. The password is "ContractDesign01". Number of participants limited to 160. Max 80 ETHZ and 80 UZH Students |
| Abstract | Contract Design I aims to bridge the gap between economic contract theory, contract law, and the writing of real-world contracts. In this course, we take a systematic approach to contract design. This means we first analyze the economic environment in which a transaction takes place, and then engineer contracts that achieve the desired outcome. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Learning objective | Contracts are agreements between parties to engage in transactions. A good contract creates value by giving parties the right incentives to meet their objectives. A good contract designer scrutinizes the economic situation in which parties find themselves and tailors the contract to the challenges at hand. To help you become sophisticated contract designers, we draw from insights for which more than half a dozen Nobel Prizes were awarded in the past two decades and transfer them to the art of writing real-world contracts. In other words, Integrative Course Contract Design will provide you with analytical tools related to contracting that are invaluable to successful lawyers, business leaders, and startup founders. We will cover topics such as moral hazard, adverse selection, elicitation mechanisms, relationship-specific investments, and relational contracting and apply the theoretical insights to real-life case studies ranging from purchases & sales of assets, oil & gas exploration, movie production & distribution, construction & development, M&A deals, to executive compensation and many other types of transactions. The course will be held in a flipped class-room model: This means that you will watch learning videos specifically produced for this course ahead of the lecture and we will use the class time to discuss real-world case studies. ETH students: Your grade will consist of two parts: 1) You are required to take weekly computer-based quizzes during class time. Thus, it is imperative that you attend the lectures to be able to finish the quizzes and pass this course. 2) You have to compose short responses to take-home questions on the case studies we discussed in class and upload them. Note that UZH and HSG students enrolling in this course earn more ECTS on completing this course than ETH students. This is because UZH and HSG students must hand in an extensive group project in addition to the weekly quizzes and take-home questions. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lecture notes | Handouts, prerecorded videos, slides, and other materials | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prerequisites / Notice | Attendance is mandatory. You are only allowed to miss two lectures absent special reasons. Contract Design I is available to ETH students through the Science in Perspective (SiP) Program of D-GESS. This course is particularly suitable for students of D-ARCH, D-BAUG, D-CHAB, DMATH, D-MTEC, D-INFK, and D-MAVT. If you have any questions regarding the course, please write an email to the teaching assistants, Lucas Gericke (lucas.gericke@gess.ethz.ch) or Serge von Steiger (serge.vonsteiger@gess.ethz.ch). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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