The Indian Private Law Review
Board of Advisors
Prof. (Dr.) Shivprasad Swaminathan
Professor of Law and Dean
Shiv Nadar School of Law
Prof. (Dr.) Nigam Nuggehalli
Professor of Law and Registrar
National Law School of India University
Prof. Katy Barnett
Professor of Law
Melbourne Law School
Prof. Manasi Kumar
Professor of Law
Jindal Global Law School
Mihir Naniwadekar
Advocate, Bombay High Court
Scope and Mandate
The Indian Private Law Review (IPLR) is committed to advancing rigorous, doctrinal scholarship in private law with a focus on Indian law. Our aim is to make under-explored areas and theoretical foundations of private law clearer and more accessible. We particularly welcome submissions that trace the development of doctrines in Indian law, as well as an analysis of the law in common or civil law jurisdictions that draw on these doctrines. In defining our scope, we have kept the categories deliberately broad and general to create a diverse corpus of scholarship on under-explored subjects in Indian private law.
The following are merely indicative subject-matter categories:
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Commercial Remedies: Damages, restitution, specific performance;
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Contracts: Vitiating factors (misrepresentation, fraud, mistake etc); special contracts (indemnities, bailments, guarantee, agency);
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Quasi-contracts: Unjust enrichment, quantum meruit;
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Tort Law: Negligence, breach of statutory duty, nuisance, economic torts, absolute and strict liability;
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Legal Philosophy: Theoretical contributions on any field of private law (causation, foreseeability)
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The Law of Equity: Trusts, fiduciary duties, equitable remedies and the development and application of equitable principles in Indian private law.
Board of Editors
Founding Editors
Prem Vinod Parwani
Student, NLSIU
Ex - International Editor, Cambridge LR
Ex - Deputy Editor-in-Chief, NLSBLR
Ex - Editor-in-Chief, LSPR
Kedar Manoj Ammanji
Student, NLSIU
Editor-in-Chief, NLSIR
Ex - Deputy Editor-in-Chief, IJIEL
Anirud Raghav S U
Student, NLSIU
Ex - Editor, NLSBLR
Foreword to IPLR: by Prof. (Dr.) Shivprasad Swaminathan
D.Phil (Oxford); B.C.L. (Oxford), B.L.S LL.B (ILS - Pune)
Professor and Dean, Shiv Nadar School of Law, Shiv Nadar University, Chennai
With the aim of fostering scholarship in—and inviting new young scholars into—an area which has traditionally not had many backers, the editors of IPLR have thoughtfully reimagined the form and substance of a typical legal blog. They have dispensed with the requirement for contemporaneity for their submissions (historical, philosophical or genealogical pieces are all welcome); and included non-traditional categories of submissions like precis of canonical articles in private law. I am very hopeful that IPLR will be successful in drawing many young law students to private law and also serve as a gateway to Indian private law for the uninitiated.
FEATURED ARTICLES
Market Loss in "The Skyros": Remoteness, Mitigation and the Limits of Taxonomy
Chiranth Mukunda
In this piece, the author argues that the market rule in contract damages reflects parties’ assumed responsibility and allocation of risk rather than the mitigation doctrine, and is agreement-centred. This argument is illustrated through an analysis of the difficulties exposed by The Skyros v. Hapag-Lloyd (2025).
The Impact of Indian Contract Law on the Development of Common Law Contract Damages and Sale of Goods Law
Prof. (Dr.) Katy Barnett
In this piece, the author argues that section 73 of the Indian Contract Act did more than codify damages; it channelled Indian doctrinal insights into English law, shaped the evolution of remoteness, and helped entrench Hadley v Baxendale as a foundational rule across the Commonwealth.
The Indian Contract Law 1872: A Unique Achievement?
Prof. (Dr.) Warren Swain
In this instructive guest post, Prof. (Dr.) Warren Swain explores the 150-year legacy of the Indian Contract Act 1872. He examines its unique role as a Benthamite experiment in codification, contrasting India’s legal evolution with other British colonies to highlight why the Act remains a singular achievement.
Restitution Against Public Authorities II: Insights from English Law
Aanjneya Tandon
In this piece, the author interrogates restitutionary claims against public authorities by critically examining Indian law post-Mafatlal through insights from English jurisprudence. They question the transplantation of private law unjust enrichment defences into disputes implicating constitutional values. They ultimately argue for a hybrid framework to reconcile public and private law concerns in cases involving State restitution.
What can Private Law Contribute to Indian Public Law?
Balu G Nair
In this piece, the author argues that Indian jurisprudence undervalues private law, especially in Constitutional Torts, where public law dominates. It urges reinvigorating and applying private law principles like causation, fault and damages, using Beever's Theory, to ensure accountability and prevent overreach by writ courts into domains better suited for private adjudication.
Examining the Foundations of Contract Law: A Précis of Fuller and Purdue's Reliance Interest Framework
Kedar Manoj Ammanji
This piece opens a series of précis on foundational works in private law. This précis analyses the Reliance Interest framework developed by Lon L. Fuller and William R. Purdue in their seminal two-part articles - Reliance Interest in Contract Damages I and II.
Restitution Against Public Authorities: The Status of ‘Passing On’ Defence in Indian Law
Anirud Raghav S U
This piece explores the defence of passing in the context of a restitutionary claim against public authorities, typically in cases of ultra vires payments. It argues that Mafatlal Industries v. Union of India, the controlling precedent, reverse-engineers artificial reasoning by invoking the private law defence of ‘passing on’ to deny recovery, while the legal question could have been simply settled based on Art.265 of the Constitution.
What is Private Law Really?
Prem Vinod Parwani
This piece tries to answer the question of 'what is private law'? What distinguishes 'hard' public law from private law? How do we justify the 'public law pressures' in private law?
The Puzzles in our Preambles: A Backdoor to Common Law or a Self-Contained Code?
Anirud Raghav and Prem Vinod Parwani
In this piece, the authors argue that the preambles and legislative history of the Indian Contract Act and the Indian Evidence Act provide guidance as to whether they were intended to operate as complete codes. They excavate that the Indian Evidence Act was a complete code, while the ICA was not.
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