This book investigates the legal and practical challenges inherent in the use of contracts between government bodies, specifically addressing the lack of formal regulation and enforcement mechanisms. A. C. L. Davies, a scholar in public law, utilizes a socio-legal framework to examine how internal government agreements function in practice. By analyzing the limitations of current administrative structures, the author proposes a new public law approach to improve the fairness and operational effectiveness of these inter-agency contracts.

Legal scholars and practitioners recognize this work as a significant contribution to the study of administrative law and public sector governance. Experts frequently cite the text for its rigorous application of socio-legal methodology to the often-overlooked area of internal government contracting.