Although civil law courts take the wording of a contractual provision as a starting point when construing it, they take into account what the intentions of the parties were. This contrasts with the more formal construction rules of common law and may be seen as an additional cause of the concise drafting style of civil law lawyers. There is no general concept of good faith in the contract law of the common law countries, where the courts have developed other means of enforcing bargains, such as by implying terms into the contract. As far as the formation of contracts is concerned, some civil law countries deem an offer to be irrevocable if the offeror does not specify the contrary. In contrast, under the common law rules there is a presumption that the offer is revocable if it has not yet been accepted.
Common law requires consideration for the formation of a contract.
Civil law does not. Civil law countries do not have a strict distinction between conditions and warranties. Some civil law Codes treat specific performance as the primary remedy for breach of contract even if in most cases the plaintiff can opt for damages. In contrast a common law court may order specific performance only if certain requirements are met. These examples show some of the differences existing between the two main types of system.