Report on Proposals for Unfair Contracts Relief published by the British Columbia Law Institute

The British Columbia Law Institute has published its "Report on Proposals for Unfair Contracts Relief," which you may read here.

As set out in today's press release:

The report recommends that British Columbia enact a Contract Fairness Act to consolidate and modernize the leading concepts that contract law deploys against contractual unfairness.

“The current law on contractual unfairness is largely found in court cases and this body of precedent contains needless complexities, gaps, and uncertainties,” noted committee chair Prof. Joost Blom,QC. “The time is ripe to address these issues and make the law more certain and accessible by enacting legislation.”

The proposed Contract Fairness Act will clarify vexing ambiguities in the application of unconscionability, duress, and undue influence, create a framework for integrating those concepts, provide for a duty of good faith in the performance of contracts and supply a definition of “good faith,” and address concerns about remedies for misrepresentation.