If you see code that checks for every possible type of exception or input error, do you think that code is secretly hoping that an exception occurs? Or do you just think the programmer is trying to cover all the bases so he/she can decide what happens when an error occurs?

Contracts are just the 'source code' that define agreements. There's nothing wrong with very specific and precise language. Granted, since contracts are tied to negotiation, some people can be over-aggressive, but mostly long contracts just come from people who have gotten burned before, and have no desire to be burned again.