The book The Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch in the version as from 2 January 2002 is the very backbone
of German civil law. Its institutions and principles are essential for the understanding of the
law of Europe's major legal systems. This second volume of the article-by-article commentary
covers Books 4 to 5 of the BGB: Family Law and the Law of Succession. Together with the first
volume on Books 1 to 3 the second volume now completes the extensive English language
commentary on the BGB. The commentary of each article is headed by the current version of the
article both in the German original and an English translation followed by a clearly and
uniformly structured analysis of the provision. Focus is laid on the understanding of the
purpose and meaning of the provision in the context of the code and the proper use of the
terminology both in German and English. As the meaning of the BGB does not always follow from
the wording of its provisions especially if translated into another language they need
further explanation. Facing this challenge the commentary meets the expectations both of
German and foreign lawyers by providing the proper terminology and explanation in English to
lawyers and translators and by offering a systematic overview on the BGB to lawyers who are not
very familiar with German civil law. The advantages at a glance Article-by-Article Commentary
in English language clearly and uniformly structured analysis of each provision The target
group For German and foreign lawyers.
