Good Faith in Canadian Contract Law (2 Volumes)

Good faith is a critical feature of contracts and commercial disputes, where its influence upon the parties’ rights and obligations can be profound, and often outcome-determinative. However, despite its centrality to legal systems around the world, good faith is still at an early stage of development in Canada’s common law jurisdictions, and many difficult questions about it remain. Decisions regarding contractual good faith are released on a daily basis by the courts, and it is difficult to keep track of the growing body of case law.

Good Faith in Canadian Contract Law is the first and only text in Canada to undertake a systematic review of the organizing principle of good faith and its associated doctrines. It analyzes jurisprudence, commentary and legislation from a number of jurisdictions, and provides readers with a full picture of how good faith operates throughout the life of a contract.

The book is written by Brandon Kain, who successfully acted as counsel to the appellants in the Supreme Court of Canada’s leading good faith cases of Bhasin v. Hrynew and C.M. Callow Inc. v. Zollinger, and has served as an adjunct law professor for over a decade.

Topics Covered

• The essential features of the organizing principle of good faith
• Good faith performance doctrines such as the duty of honest performance and the duty to exercise contractual discretion reasonably
• The potential significance of good faith to contractual negotiations
• The relationship between good faith and contractual formation doctrines, such as unconscionability, unilateral mistake and duress
• The implications of good faith in specific contracts, such as employment, insurance and tendering agreements
• How good faith affects the interpretation of contracts, and the enforceability of contractual provisions that purport to exclude or require good faith behaviour
• Remedies for conduct contrary to good faith
• Comparative analysis of good faith outside common law Canada, including in Quebec, the United States, England, Australia and Europe

Who Should Read This Book

• Contract Lawyers to understand and advise clients about how good faith doctrines may affect the rights and obligations created by their agreements
• Litigation Lawyers since it analyzes how arguments about good faith are received by the courts, and what remedies may be available if they succeed
• In-House Counsel to appreciate the many contractual settings where good faith can be relevant, and how it affects negotiations and drafting
• Government Lawyers because it analyzes how good faith affects government contracts specifically
• Judges who need an up-to-date overview of good faith based on the leading cases, and an analysis of where the law may be heading
• Scholars who are interested in the historical and theoretical foundations of good faith, and its treatment across different jurisdictions
• Law Schools and Students as it provides an authoritative account of good faith in contracts and serves as a useful supplement to teaching materials
• Law Libraries seeking a comprehensive account of good faith, a matter that is now central to contract law