Teaching contract law across multiple jurisdictions

This paper examines the teaching of contract law in England and Pakistan, two jurisdictions shaped by distinct legal traditions. England’s common law tradition prioritises case-based pedagogy, cultivating inductive reasoning through close engagement with judicial precedents. Pakistan, by contrast, relies on the Contract Act 1872 as the foundation of a codified but mixed legal system, where teaching often centres on statutory interpretation supplemented by selective case law. Drawing on the authors’ first-hand teaching experiences and analysis of curricula, textbooks and pedagogical practices, the paper uses a comparative case study method to explore how systemic differences in legal structures influence classroom practice. The analysis reveals the strengths and limitations of each model: statute-centred pedagogy provides clarity and accessibility but risks rote learning, while case-centred pedagogy fosters analytical rigour but underplays practical skills. Building on experiential learning theory, the paper argues for a blended approach that sequences statutory analysis with case law reasoning and embeds experiential learning activities such as problem-based tutorials and drafting workshops. Such harmonisation cultivates both deductive and inductive reasoning, balancing doctrinal skills with professional judgement, the findings have wider relevance for other mixed legal systems, offering transferable design principles for curriculum development and legal education reform.