What are the 4 requisites for binding a contract in quebec?
1) consent
- offer and acceptance
- agreement between parties
- offer may be revoked any time before acceptance is received by offeror
- if an offer has a time limit, it may not be revoked before time expires
- an offer lapses if no acceptance is received or if death or bankruptcy of the offeror or offeree occur
- silence is not acceptance
- genuine intent to enter contract
2) capacity to contract
- minors
- persons of diminished contractual capacity
- corporations
3) cause of contract
- reason for contract
- must be within the law
4) object of contract
- entail obligation of some sort
- object prohibited by law or contrary public order is null
What is the major difference between civil code of quebec and the rest of canada’s capacity to contract regarding minors?
- emancipation
- when minors attain the age of 16, they or their tutors may apply to the court for emancipation
- does not confer all the rights resulting from majority, but releases the minor from obligation to be represented for the exercise of his civil rights
- emancipated minor may establish his own domicile, and he ceases to be under the authority of his mom/dad
- emancipated minor may perform all acts of simple admin
- full emancipation is obtained by marriage
- full emancipation enables a minor to exercise his civil rights as if he were full age
Explain void and voidable contracts under civil code.
- to annul a contract is to void it; treat is if it never existed
- parties are put back in same legal/economic position they were in before they contracted
- nullity is retroactive; it goes back to the beginning
- relative nullity aka voidable contract, can only be put forth by the party that the law aimed to protect and may be confirmed
- absolute nullity aka void contract, when call parties involved can claim it and may not be confirmed
What are the obligations that may be extinguished or terminated by?
- payment
- expiry of an extinctive term (expiration of any time limits)
- novation
- prescription
- compensation
- confusion
- release (waiving right to demand performance)
- impossibility of performance
- discharge of debtor
What is novation?
- the replacement of the obligation with a new obligation
- some or all terms of contract would be renegotiated
What is prescription?
- an obligation will be terminated by the expiration of any time periods set by law
What is confusion?
- is a legal situation which occurs where a debtor becomes his own creditor or visa versa
Who is a prior creditor?
- is generally the creditor who is accorded priority in payment from the assets of his debtor
what is a hypothecary creditor?
- a mortgagee or lien holder
What does lesion mean?
- a mistake
- an economic error on value of the prestation or damage to interests of a party to the contract
- it is a cause of nullity only in cases with respect to minors
Define prestation.
- as a performance of something due upon an obligation
Define determinate person.
- is a particular individual
Define indeterminate person.
- would be a general group such as the public at large
