Face-to-face , second term, 45 hours of theory and 7,5 hours of tutorials with cases.

These Learning activities are given in French.
Some decisions of jurisprudence or documents analysed in class or during tutorials may however be written in Dutch.

French (and understanding of Dutch is recommended).

HDDR1312A - Contract law and civil liability law [2 Q. • 45 Th. • Pond. : 3] Catherine Delforge
HDDR1312B - Exercises session with casus in contract law and civil liability [2 Q. • 7,5 Ex. • Pond. : 1] N.

1° Main course
This course provides the students with a general background in special contract (civil) law and civil liability law.

The understanding and mastery of the concepts, their application to concrete situations, and the development of a critical mind are the main objectives of the course.

2° The tutorials
There are two main aims.

1. Application of the law to facts. The aim is to enable the students to approach, concretely, the subject matter, thanks to an initiation to sources and acts (reading of rulings and acts, analysis of documents out of the practice, etc.) and to help them to look for the solving of a legal problem through the solving of practical cases in class. We will focus on the learning of concepts and the ability to apply them to facts.

2. Extraction of law from its applications. The aim is to sharpen the students' ability to understand the sense, the scope and the value of a court decision - a judgment of the Court of appeal relating to a precise and technique element of the studied subject matter - by the means of a written work. We will focus on the capability to extract the law out of an application, which has been done.

For the Bachelor in Law (Evening Programme) :

None

1° Main course
The first part of the course, the most significant, will be devoted to the study of the main special contracts.

It extends the study of the extra contractual obligations regime based on the contracts named by the Civil Code, and focusing on the sale, lease and service contracts (business and mandate).

Through the analysis of the regime of these contracts, we will draw the students' attention, as a future legal practitioner, on the fact that every specific contract is necessarily at the junction of “general” norms (which constitute what is usually called “common law of contractual obligations” and are intended to govern the conclusion, implementation, interpretation and dissolution of every contract; as confirmed in the article 1107 of the Civil Code) and “special” norms, which constitute more specifically the subject matter of this course.

The aim is also to highlight the practical importance that can exist for the parties to complete, adjust or exclude this “general” or “special” law with the help of even more specific norms. The study of clauses emanating from legal practice enables us to understand the actual implications of contractual freedom and the significance of protective legislative interventions.

This first part of the course will have the following structure:
- A general introduction will review in a structuring and transversal perspective:
• the distinction between nominate and innominate contracts;
• the main principles of the junction between general law and special law of contracts;
• the issue of legal qualification;
• the main legal and doctrinal classifications of contracts;
- The sale and exchange;
- the lease of things, and more specifically, the “common law” lease and the main residence lease;
- the contract for services or contract for the supply of services;
- the mandate.

The second part of the course will be devoted to the study of extra-contractual civil liability.

Initially, the aim will be to define the general frame of such a liability, through a critical assessment of the foundations on which it may rely and by focusing on the evolutions that such a choice necessarily induces: Fault or risk? Individual behaviour or collective risk? Individualism or solidarity? Commutative or distributive justice? Influence of insurance, etc.

The liability regimes based on Civil Code will then be studied in more details (art. 1382-13686bis).
Others specific laws may be studied, as well the main objective liability regimes:
• compensation for the damages suffered by vulnerable road-users (article 29bis of the law of 21 November 1989 relating to compulsory insurance for motor vehicles);
• liability for defective products (law of 25 February 1991)

Generally speaking, the course will insist on the importance of establishing theoretical links between general law and special law of contracts, between special liability regimes and common law, this in order to better understand the concrete implications of the legal rules that affect them and to develop a critical mind.

2° Tutorials
The practical work consists of writing an essay on a concrete issue, relating to some extent to a news topic.
The first session will be devoted to the written work.
The four following sessions will study specific issues presented during the lecture (sale, job contract, civil liability of common law, presumption of responsibility, objective responsibilities, strict or non-fault liability, etc), which will be approached from a practical point of view thanks to the solving of exercises and the analysis of documents.

1° Main course
This learning activity is taught as a lecture.

2° Tutorials
It is completed by (mandatory) exercise sessions in small groups and supervised by M. Defosse.

Written work: The first session will be devoted to the general presentation of the subjects and of the methodology specific to the judgment's comment. At mid-term, the students will have to hand out an outline presenting the state of the report as well as a temporary bibliography. Optional meetings with the professor can take place by appointment only.

Practical exercise sessions: Every student should have read the documents in the syllabus and prepare the exercises relating to it. It is however not necessary to make further research in the libraries. The students may also be asked to present orally the result of their reflection to the other students.

The written work and the preparation of the sessions require the respect of the instructions mentioned in the specifications.

1. Course material subject to evaluation

(a) Main course
The examination will cover the subject matter studied in the lecture, possibly completed by a syllabus, as well as the documents and decisions analysed in class and during the tutorials.
The evaluation is noted on 20 (ponderation : ?).
The examination can include questions of knowledge (through the definition of concepts and institutions studied in class), of reflection (through a comparison exercise or a theoretical “open” question), and when appropriate, the solving of a practical case, the commentary of a jurisprudential decision or the analysis of documents taken from legal practice.

Students repeating their year will make sure their notes are up to date: the evaluation is, of course, related to the subject matter taught during the academic year in which the examination takes place.

(b) The exercise sessions (tutorials)
When the practical work is finalised, the students are marked out of 20 points (ponderation : ?).

The evaluation criteria are: the quality of the intellectual approach and the resolution of the practical case, the structure of the written work, the rigor both in substance and in form, the bibliography and the correct use of sources, compliance with instructions, spelling and participation in class.
2. Authorised documents and references

During the entire examination the students may have at their disposal:
- their code(s) as well as the special laws related to the subject matter (see below “supports”);
- the jurisprudential decisions that were referred to in class, providing, however, that the students have the complete /original versions of the said decisions (excluding the excerpts of jurisprudence, summaries, etc.).

The codes that include summaries of jurisprudence are not authorised.

The authorised documents may:
• be underlined or highlighted (fluorescent)
• include a reference to a law or regulation (e.g. see article 1134 of the Civil Code) and/or to a decision of jurisprudence (in this case, only the mention seized court and de decision date are authorised, nothing more)

The use of keywords and other annotations is not allowed, unless they refer to the name of the relevant Code or a specific legislation.

A check of all documents is carried out at the start of the examination. Any non-compliance with the instructions mentioned here above will be brought to the attention of the President of the Jury, regardless of the intent or good / bad faith of the student. It is, indeed, the responsibility of each student to personally ensure compliance with these instructions.

3. Students entitled to exemptions

Students who were formally exempted from one or several sections of the subject matter are invited to:
- Send an email to the professor no later than two days before the exam date so that special arrangements can be made for the evaluation;
- On the day of the exam, bring a copy of the official exemption document.

Are only taken into account the exemptions recognised by the knowledge assessment Commission that reports to the jury of the programme: no unofficial exemption will therefore given by the professor and that, whatever the circumstances or grades previously obtained by the student.

1. Lecture supports:

(a) Main course

On Contract Law:

A. Cruquenaire, C. Delforge, I. Durant et P. Wéry, Droit des contrats spéciaux, Ouvrage à l'attention des étudiants du programmes de bachelier en droit, Waterloo, Kluwer, 2015, 4ème éd., 528 p.

On Liability:

C. Delforge, Responsabilité civile aquilienne, Support de cours, U. Saint-Louis, 2015.

(b) Exercise sessions

The resolution of practical case implies the use of different sources: course syllabus, non-exhaustive bibliography of the specifications manual, library research (legislation, doctrine, jurisprudence)...

2° Legislation supports:

C. Delforge et P. Jadoul (coord.), Obligations, Contrats et Responsabilité - Principaux textes juridiques, Limal, Anthemis, 2014, 852 p. (couvre les années académiques 2014-2015 et 2015-2016, moyennant une mise à jour via le site compagnon www.legis.be), disponible au service de reprographie de l'Université.

The code is available at the copy service of the University.

3° Bibliography:

The syllabuses include a deliberately restricted bibliography. The aim is indeed to enable the students who desire to, to have one or two “basic” references in the subject matter.
The professor may also provide some decisions. In this case they are to be included in the subject matter that has to be studied for the final examination.