Hugh Beale was Professor of Law at the University of Warwick, UK, from 1987 until 2018; he is now an Emeritus Professor. He holds a visiting professorship at the University of Oxford as well as an honorary Senior Research Fellowship at Harris Manchester College, Oxford. He has held visiting professorships or has taught classes at a number of continental European Universities, most recently Amsterdam and Trento; and also in Taiwan and Hong Kong.

He was a member of the (‘Lando’) Commission on European Contract Law (1987–2000), of the Coordinating Committee of the Study Group on a European Civil Code (1999–2007), of the Team which compiled the Draft Common Frame of Reference and the Expert Group on the proposed Common European Sales Law. He has published books and articles on both European and comparative contract law.

He is currently the General Editor of the leading practitioner work on English contract law, Chitty on Contracts (35th edn in press). From 2000—2007, he served as a Law Commissioner for England and Wales, responsible for the Commercial and Common Law Team.