Public-Private Contractual Networks and Third Parties’ Rights: The Contracting State as a Challenge for Private Law

Abstract

In public-private partnership, the question of a third party's rights always was and still remains very controversial. On the one hand, public law has elaborated extensively on third parties' rights over the years. Solutions range from the two-step approach (Zweistufentheorie) to the extensive use of constitutional rights to the requirement of a compulsory written consent. On the other hand, under private contract law, third parties are almost completely barred from having any legal influence on the contract as a matter of principle