Exception Hierarchies

Overview

Design exception hierarchies that enable precise catching and meaningful handling.

Random exception classes lead to catch-all blocks or missed errors. A well-designed hierarchy lets callers catch at the right abstraction level.

When to Use

• Creating custom exception classes
• Designing error handling strategy
• Refactoring scattered try/catch blocks
• Wrapping third-party library errors
• Debugging "unexpected error" catch-alls

The Iron Rule