Journal of Research and Development in Comparative Law

Journal of Research and Development in Comparative Law

Compelling the Obligor in Cases of Contractual Breach: A Comparative Study of German Law with Reference to Doctorinal Theories in Iranian Law

Articles in Press

Document Type : scientific research paper

Authors
Alireza Gholami 1
Mansour Amini 2
1 Ph.D. Student in Private Law, University of Shahid beheshti
2 Associate Professor, Department of Private Law, Faculty of Law, Shahid Beheshti University
10.22034/law.2025.2055500.1627
Abstract
In the Romano-Germanic legal system, the sanctity of obligations is recognized as a fundamental principle. This means that the law must exert every possible effort to preserve the validity of contracts concluded through the free will of the parties. Accordingly, compelling the obligor to perform the specific subject matter of the obligation constitutes the primary reaction to a breach of contract. The German legal system, which is generally influenced by ancient Roman law and characterized by a formalistic structure, has designed a multi-stage enforcement mechanism which, while maintaining the priority of compulsion within the hierarchy of remedies, has succeeded to a large extent in overcoming the practical deficiencies of this remedy and establishing a balance between the protection of the obligee and the consideration of the obligor’s interests.this study scrutinizes the first stage of this mechanism—namely, granting an additional period for performance—from substantive, procedural, and legal-effects perspectives, within a comparative analytical framework. The findings indicate that under this system, when the obligor refuses to perform the obligation, the obligee must first grant an additional deadline for performance, and only in the case of continued refusal may the subsequent stages and other legal remedies be invoked.

Conversely, in Iranian law, according to the predominant doctrinal opinion, compelling the obligor is likewise regarded as the initial reaction to contractual breach. However, the enforcement of this remedy in practice has proved inefficient and has constantly faced serious theoretical and practical criticisms. In recent legislative developments, under a considerable influence of the solutions adopted in the common law system and with the aim of facilitating contractual relations, the Iranian legislator’s inclination to maintain the central position of compulsion among contractual remedies has diminished. applying a comparative and descriptive–analytical method and based on a precise interpretation of the relevant provisions of the German Civil Code, this article seeks to propose a functional model for reforming and enhancing the system of compulsion in Iranian law. The findings suggest that, without departing from the traditional foundations of civil law and through targeted reforms inspired by the German legal experience, most of the existing deficiencies can be resolved and the efficiency of contractual performance enforcement can be significantly improved.
Keywords
Specific Perfomance
Nachfrist
Sanctity of obligations
Dual enforcement
Reasonable deadline

Subjects

1.     A. Daroui (2014), Termination for the reason of breach of contract (Primary Termination), Journal of Studies in Islamic Law & Jurisprudence, Volume 6, Issue 10, July, 117-144, (in Persion)
2.     Abbas Moghadari, Hekmatollah Asgari (2015), Judicial and Lawful Study of Timely Obligation Enforcement in Iran's Law, Summer, Volume 11, Issue 39, 118-134, (in Persion)
3.     Aghapour, Hadi (2018), Constraint procedure for doing contractual obligations (Iranian law - Imamieh jurisprudence), "Adl va Ensaf" Comparative Law Researches Quarterly, Volume 1, Issue 1, June, 7-21, (in Persion)
4.     Ali Ansari, ahad, shahi Damanjani (2018), Examining the Efficiency of Priority of the “Specific Performance” over “Termination of Contract” in Respect of Historical, Economic and Philosophical Analysis of Islamic Law, Jurisprudence the Essentials of the Islamic Law, Volume 50, Issue 2, March, 261-279, (in Persion)
5.     Ali Ansari, Hasan Badini, Ahad Shahi Damanjani (2017), Interaction of Specific Performance and Cumulativeness of Termination of Contract and Contractual Remedies: Efficiency Examination in Contractual Sanctions Regime, Private Law, Volume 14, Issue 2, October,179-198, (in Persion)
6.     Ali Ansari, Hasan Badini, Ahad Shahi Damanjani (2017), Investigating the Efficiency of the Precedence of Enforcement to Specific Performance over the Termination of Contract within Iranian and American Law, Encyclopedia of Economic Law Journal, Volume 24, Issue 11, Serial Number 11, April, 84-106, (in Persion)
7.     Amir Sadeghi Neshat (2010), Termination of Contracts with Possibility of Enfocement, Private Law Studies Quarterly, Volume 39, Issue 4 - Serial Number 162141, March, 298-314, (in Persion)
8.     BGB, https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/bgb/ , (in German)
9.     C.W Dagmar (2005), The New Approach to Breach of Contract in German Law, Oxford, Hart Publishing, 3-13.
10.  G.E Fisher (2019), Remedies for Breach of Contract under the International Sales Conventions, Macarthur Law Review, 236-257.
11.  Giovanna D’Aflonso (2003), The European Judicial Harmonization of Contractual Law: Observations on The German Law Reform and Europeanization of the BGB, European Business Law Review, Vol 14, Issue 6, 689-726.
12.  Hasan Badini, Farnaz Forouzan Boroojeni (2018), An Analytical Approach to the Possibility of Contract Termination with the Availability of Specific Performance in German and Iranian Law, Journal of Legal Studies, Volume 10, Issue 1, Serial Number 27, June, 37-59, (in Persian)
13.  Hessami, Ali, & Lotfi Dodaran, Alireza. (2020). A Comparative Study of Specific Performance in Iranian Law and the 1980 Vienna Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG), Journal of New Achievements in Human Sciences Studies, Third year, Volume 34, March, 42-51, (in Persian)
14.  HGB, https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/hgb/ , (in German)
1.      Javadi, Mehdi (2024), The Durability of the Legal Rule`s Validity After The Introduction of an Exception (Exceptio firmat regulam), Journal of Research and Development in Private Law, Vol. 1, No. 2, Fall 2024 and Winter 2025, 111-129, doi: 10.22034/jpl.2024.2042699.1137 (in Persian)
2.      Javaherkalam, Mohammad Hadi (2025), The Necessity of Revising and Amending the Land Registration Act Regarding the Status of Informal Land Transactions: Based on Comparative Studies; The Necessity of Aligning with the Anglo-German System or pursuing the French approach?, Journal of Research and development in comparative law, Vol. 8, No. 27, Summer 2025, 70-108, DOI: 10.22034/law.2025.2062034.1657(in Persian)
15.  Lando, H. & & Rose, C. (2000). On Specific Performance in Civil Law and Enforcement Costs. Institut for Finansiering, Copenhagen Business School. Working Papers/ Department of Finance. Copenhagen Business School No. 2000-10.
16.   Leible, Stefan; Lehmann, Matthias (2014), European Contract Law and German Law, The Netherlands, Kluwer Law International.
17.  Lorenz, Werner(1997), Reform of the German Law of Breach of Contract, The Edinburgh Law Review, Vol.1, Issue.2, Edinburgh University Press. 317-344.
18.   Markesenis, B.C and Unberath, H and Johnson ,A (2006), The German Law of Contract: A Comparative Treatise, Oxford, Hart Publishing.
19.  Markesinis, B.S & Lorenz, W & Dennemann, G (1997), The German Law of Obligations, The Law of Contracts and Restitution: A Comparative Introduction, Oxford, Clarendon Press.
20.  Meyer, Justus (2018), Wirtschaftsrecht:Handels- und Gesellschaftsrecht, Leipzig, Deutschland, Springer Gabler, (in German)
21.  Mousourakis, George (2015), Roman Law and the Origins of the Civil Law Tradition, Auckland, New Zealand, Springer, (in German)
22.  Müller-chen, Markus (1996), Der erfüllungsanspruch- primär inhalt der obligation?, Jahrbruch Junger zivilrechtswissenschaftler, (in German)
23.  Rudkowski, Lena (2016), Wirtschaftsrecht: BGB AT, Schuldrecht, Sachenrecht, Berlin, Deutschland, Springer Gabler, (in German)
24.  Seyed Hossein Safaei, Nematollah Olfat (2010), Specific Performance and Its Priority over Avoidance, Journal of Comparative Law, Volume 0, Issue 18, Serial Number 79, April, 43-62, (in Persian)
25.  Seyed Hossein, Safaei (1389), Elementry Course of Civil Law: General Principles of Contracts, Tehran, Mizan, (in Persian)
26.  Stürner, Michael (2021), Europäisches Vertragsrecht: Institutionelle und methodische Grundlagen, materielles Recht, Kollisionsrecht, Konstanz, Deutschland, De Gruyter, (in German) 
27.  Tahmasebi A. Comparative Study of Specific Performance and Termination of Contract in Iran’s and German law, (2018), Comparative Law Researches, Volume 22, Issue 1, 27-49, (in Persian)
28.  Welser, Rudolf; Zöchligung-Jud, Brigitta (2015), Grundriss des bürgerlichen Rechts: Band II: Schuldrecht Allgemeiner Teil, Schuldrecht Besonderer Teil, Erbrecht, Wien, MANZ’sche Verlags, (in German)
29.  Zekoll, Joachim; Wagner, Gerhard (2018), Introduction to German Law, The Netherlands, Kluwer Law International.
30.  Zerres, Thomas (2018), Bürgerliches Recht: Allgemeiner Teil, Schuldrecht, Sachenrecht, Zivilprozessrecht, Konstanz, Deutschland, Springer, (in German)
Journal of Research and Development in Comparative Law

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 06 November 2025