CONTRACT LAW REFORM IN QUEBEC

Abstract

This article considers four sources of contract law reform in Quebec: 1) Civil Code amendments, 2) special statutes, 3) judicial interpretation, and 4) proposals for overall reform contained in the Draft Civil Code. After comparing and contrasting these approaches to determine the most preferable, the author examines how each has or will affect the substance of contract law, especially the autonomy, binding force and relativity of contracts. He also considers whether the doctrine of lesion is a desirable addition to Quebec law. He concludes that the Draft Civil Code most efficiently brings contract law into alignment with judicial and socio-economic conditions and modernizes its substance to accord with already existing legal rules.