The Commenda, an early form of contract law for the formation of companies, was invented in Italy sometime between 900 and 1100 AD. The Italian merchants developed a sophisticated four-part document designed to arrange for a loan of money, terms of use, repayment plan, and the obligations of the debtor. These contracts were originally expressed in fractions, but later on in percentages.
My students over the weekend have to construct their own such contract, using some of the examples that they learned from yesterday’s videos.
