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64-547: First introduced by Camille Laurin , the Minister of Cultural Development under the first Parti Québécois government of Premier René Lévesque , it was passed by the National Assembly and received royal assent on August 26, 1977. The charter's provisions expanded upon the 1974 Official Language Act (Bill 22), which was enacted during the tenure of Premier Robert Bourassa 's Liberal government to make French

128-409: A leonine contract , a take-it-or-leave-it contract , or a boilerplate contract ) is a contract between two parties, where the terms and conditions of the contract are set by one of the parties, and the other party has little or no ability to negotiate more favorable terms and is thus placed in a "take it or leave it" position. While these types of contracts are not illegal per se , there exists

192-452: A bad bargain is not one of them. These provisions do not apply in contracts for the international sale of goods, i.e. where the parties' places of business are in the territories of different states. The Standard Form Contract Act 1982 defines a set of depriving conditions that may be canceled by a court of law, including unreasonable exclusion or limitation of liability, unreasonable privileges to unilaterally cancel, suspend or postpone

256-409: A consumer contract that are contrary to the criterion of good faith (Article 6.188). In July 2013, Russian Dmitry Agarkov won a court case against Tinkoff Bank after he altered the standard form contract he had received in the mail. The bank, failing to notice the changes, accepted the application and gave him an account based on the amended contract. The judge ruled that the bank was legally bound to

320-593: A knowledge of the official language appropriate to the practice of their profession. Nineteen articles of the Charter provide for the general goal of making French the language of labour relations and ensuring each worker's right to work in French. Employers are to draw up written communications to all or part of their staff, including after termination of the employment relationship, in French. They are also required to publish offers of employment, transfer or promotion in

384-650: A maximum of 12 members, appointed by the justice minister, including an acting chairman (also a district judge), civil servants (no more than a third) and, at least, 2 consumer organization representatives. The court holds hearings regarding appeals against standard form contract clauses or approval of a specific standard form contract at the requests of a provider. Standard conditions in Lithuania shall be such provisions that are prepared in advance for general and repeated use by one contracting party without their content being negotiated with another party, and which are used in

448-483: A potential for unconscionability . In addition, in the event of an ambiguity, such ambiguity will be resolved contra proferentem , i.e. against the party drafting the contract language. There is much debate on a theoretical level whether, and to what extent, courts should enforce standard form contracts. On one hand, they undeniably fulfill an important role of promoting economic efficiency. Standard form contracting reduces transaction costs substantially by avoiding

512-407: A specific level of knowledge of a language other than French is prohibited, unless the nature of the duties require it. The Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (Employment Standards, Equity, Health and Safety Commission) arbitrates in case of disagreement over the necessity of knowing a non-official language to perform a given work. The burden of the proof

576-592: A spirit of fairness and open-mindedness" and recognizes "the right of the First Nations and the Inuit in Quebec , the first inhabitants of this land, to preserve and develop their original language and culture". The Charter consists of six titles and two schedules: In order to achieve the goal of making French the "normal and everyday language of work, instruction, communication, commerce and business" and ensure

640-410: A standard form on a "take it or leave it" basis, and give one party no ability to negotiate because of their unequal bargaining position. The special scrutiny given to contracts of adhesion can be performed in a number of ways: Where the other party has reason to believe that the party manifesting such assent would not do so if he knew that the writing contained a particular term, the term is not part of

704-687: A state level as part of general consumer protection legislation and typically allow consumers to avoid clauses that are found to be unreasonable, though the specific provisions vary greatly. Some laws require notice to be given for these clauses to be effective, others prohibit unfair clauses altogether (e.g. Victorian Fair Trading Act 1999 ). Section 3 of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 (in England and Wales ) and section 17 (in relation to standard form contracts in Scotland ) limit

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768-404: Is able to influence a larger number of people by affecting the firm's reputation. Another factor that might mitigate the effects of competition on the content of contracts of adhesion is that, in practice, standard form contracts are usually drafted by lawyers instructed to construct them so as to minimize the firm's liability, not necessarily to implement managers' competitive decisions. Sometimes

832-403: Is at least equivalent. Catalogues, brochures, folders, commercial directories and other such publications must be in French. All software (for example, video games and operating systems) must be available in French unless no such version exists. Signs and posters must be in French, and if they include any additional language, the French must be markedly predominant. A recognized trademark within

896-529: Is now part of each jurisdiction's (state's or territory's) Fair Trading laws. In India leonine contracts are generally deemed unconscionable contracts (though not all leonine contracts are unconscionable contracts) and are voidable. The 199th Law Commission report (2006) on "UNFAIR (PROCEDURAL & SUBSTANTIVE) TERMS IN CONTRACT" deals with it. The unfairness can be procedural or substantive. However, standard form contracts are ubiquitous in India and especially in

960-433: Is on the employer, who must satiety each the following criteria in order to meet the requirement of having taken all reasonable means to avoid requiring knowledge or a specific level of knowledge of a language other than the official language: Product labels, their instructions, manuals, warranty certificates as well as restaurant menus and wine lists must be in French. Other languages may be used, provided French's prominence

1024-894: Is required while the latter require at least the possibility of subjective assent. In Canada, exclusion clauses in a standard form contract cannot be relied on where a seller knows or has reason to know a purchaser is mistaken as to its terms ( Tilden Rent-A-Car Co. v. Clendenning ). The Supreme Court found a standard arbitration clause requiring a gig worker to litigate before the Dutch International Chamber of Commerce void due to unconscionability in Uber Technologies Inc v Heller (2020). Standard form contracts have generally received little special treatment under Australian common law. A 2003 New South Wales Court of Appeal case ( Toll (FGCT) Pty Limited v Alphapharm Pty Limited ) gave some support for

1088-538: Is sometimes predominant on these signs. For example, French is located to the left of other languages so that it is read before the non-French text when reading left to right. (Formerly, the size and colour of text in other languages were tightly regulated as well.) Though article 97 clarifies that while "the Indian reserves are not subject to this Act ", the local indigenous languages are still subject to it off-reserve. For example, indigenous languages are not exempted from

1152-721: The Constitution of Canada since 1982. Parts of the Charter have been amended in response to rulings by Quebec Courts which were upheld by the Supreme Court of Canada . Before 1982, the only part of the Charter of the French Language that could be challenged constitutionally was that of the language of legislation and the courts. It was challenged in 1979 by Peter Blaikie , Roland Durand and Yoine Goldstein ( Attorney General of Quebec v. Blaikie ). In 1982,

1216-513: The Harvard Law Review published an influential article by Edwin W. Patterson in 1919. It was subsequently adopted by the majority of American courts, especially after the Supreme Court of California endorsed adhesion analysis in 1962. See Steven v. Fidelity & Casualty Co. , 58 Cal. 2d 862, 882 n.10 (1962) (explaining the history of the concept). For a contract to be treated as a contract of adhesion, it must be presented on

1280-545: The Parti Québécois , Paul St-Pierre Plamondon , said he supported aspects of the bill, but felt it did not go far enough, saying, "Unfortunately, the CAQ gave us the absolute minimum." A few days later PQ announced their plan if elected, which would include According to a poll by Léger published on May 22, among Francophones the approval rate for the various proposals was fluctuating between 72% and 95%. Protests against

1344-676: The United Nations Human Rights Committee in 1989: in Ballantyne v Canada , the Quebec language law was found to have violated the rights of the complainants. In response, the Quebec Liberals introduced Bill 86 which made the Charter compliant with the Canadian court rulings without the need for the override provisions. In 2013 Diane De Courcy , the Minister responsible for the Charter of

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1408-657: The United States , where he worked at the Psychopathic Department of Boston State Hospital . Following a stint in Paris in 1957, he returned to practice in Quebec. In 1961, he authored the preface of the book Les fous crient au secours , which described the conditions of psychiatric hospitals of the time. He was one of the early founders of the Quebec sovereignty movement . As a senior cabinet minister in

1472-760: The patriation of the Canadian Constitution occurred as the British Parliament passed the Canada Act 1982 . This act enacted the Constitution Act, 1982 for Canada (including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms ); section 23 introduced the notion of "minority-language education rights". This opened another door to a constitutional dispute of the Charter. Alliance Quebec , an anglophone rights lobby group,

1536-577: The French Language under Premier Pauline Marois of the Parti Québécois introduced Bill 14, An Act to Amend the Charter of the French Language, the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms and Other Legislative Provisions . The bill would have made changes to both the Charter of the French Language and the Charter of Rights of Quebec . Marois eventually withdrew the legislation in the face of criticism from Anglophone and Allophone Quebecers and

1600-585: The French language) is an advisory body whose mission is "to advise the Minister responsible for the application of the Charter of the French Language on any question relative to the French language in Quebec". It works in close collaboration with equivalent bodies in France, Belgium and Switzerland. Language in Canada is defined federally by the Official Languages Act since 1969 and is part of

1664-474: The Quebec Liberal Party, and shifted focus to the Charter of Quebec Values . However, most of the details formed basis of the 2021 amendments. On August 26, 2020, Quebec's Minister of Justice and French Language, Simon Jolin-Barrette , announced plans for 2021 that would strengthen the Charter . On May 12, 2021, the CAQ government of François Legault announced Bill 96, which strengthened

1728-473: The Supreme Court's ruling. The government departments and agencies are designated by their French name alone, and all administrative documents are drafted and published in that official language. All communications by the administration with other governments and legal persons, between departments and internally inside departments, are conducted in the official language. A person must have knowledge of

1792-488: The United States. The Uniform Commercial Code which is followed in most American states has specific provisions relating to standard form contracts for the sale or lease of goods. Furthermore, standard form contracts will be subject to special scrutiny if they are found to be contracts of adhesion. The concept of the contract of adhesion originated in French civil law, but did not enter American jurisprudence until

1856-413: The ability of the drafter of a consumer or standard form contract to draft clauses that would allow them to exclude liability in what is termed an exclusion clause. The act does not per se render ineffective provisions in other areas which to the layman appear "unfair". Where a contract has negotiated the provisions of the act likely would not apply – the law protects from a lot of things but openly making

1920-536: The ability to shop around may still have access to only form contracts with like terms and no opportunity for negotiation. Also, as noted, many people do not read or understand the terms so there might be very little incentive for a firm to offer favorable conditions as they would gain only a small amount of business from doing so. Even if this is the case, it is argued by some that only a small percentage of buyers need to actively read standard form contracts for it to be worthwhile for firms to offer better terms if that group

1984-647: The adoption of the Act respecting French, the Official and Common Language of Quebec , commonly known as Bill 96 . The preamble of the Charter states that the National Assembly resolves "to make French the language of Government and the Law, as well as the normal and everyday language of work, instruction, communication, commerce and business". It also states that the National Assembly shall pursue this objective "in

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2048-604: The adoption of the Constitution Act 1982 , which defined the educational right of French and English minorities in all provinces under section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms . The Office québécois de la langue française (Quebec Office of the French Language) (OQLF), informally known by some Anglophones as the "language police", is the commission responsible for administering policies pertaining to linguistic officialization, toponymy and francization of civil administration and businesses. It also has

2112-420: The agreement. Courts in the United States have faced the issue of shrink wrap contracts in two ways. One line of cases follows ProCD v. Zeidenberg which held such contracts enforceable (e.g. Brower v Gateway ), and the other follows Klocek v. Gateway, Inc, which found them unenforceable. These decisions are split on the question of assent, with the former holding that only objective manifestation of assent

2176-469: The application of article 58, whereby "public signs, advertising and posters must be in French", but may be in the local indigenous language "provided that French is markedly predominant". Though article 58 does allow the provincial government to "determine by regulation the places, cases, conditions or circumstances ... where French need not be predominant or where such signs, posters and advertising may be in another language only", it imposes no obligation on

2240-661: The bill included "several thousand" people in Montreal and Indigenous youth. Bill 96 was adopted on May 24, 2022, with 78 MNAs in favour (from the CAQ and Québec solidaire ) and 29 against (from the Liberal Party and Parti Québécois ). It received royal assent from Lieutenant Governor J. Michel Doyon on June 1, and subsequently became law. Camille Laurin Camille Laurin (May 6, 1922 – March 11, 1999)

2304-423: The buyer who is not in the best position to take precautions. There are a number of reasons why such terms might be accepted: Some contend that in a competitive market, consumers have the ability to shop around for the supplier who offers them the most favorable terms and are consequently able to avoid injustice. However, in the case of credit cards (and other oligopolies), for example, the consumer while having

2368-564: The charter. Bill 96 invoked the notwithstanding clause , allowing the law to temporarily override sections 2 and 7 – 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms . The invocation expires five years after its use, or earlier if legislation is passed to repeal it sooner. At the point it expires, it may be renewed again by the Quebec National Assembly. Some of the proposed measures were. The leader of

2432-426: The contracts are written by an industry body and distributed to firms in that industry, increasing homogeneity of the contracts and reducing consumers' ability to shop around. As a general rule, the common law treats standard form contracts like any other contract. The signature or some other objective manifestation of intent to be legally bound will bind the signor to the contract whether or not they read or understood

2496-651: The courts and the National Assembly of Quebec (see below). The fundamental French-language rights in Quebec are: French is the declared language of the legislature and courts in Quebec. Section 133 of the Constitution Act, 1867 , still in effect, nonetheless requires that bills be printed, published, passed and assented to in French and English in the Parliament of Canada and the Legislature of Quebec. French or English may be used by any person before

2560-497: The courts of Quebec. Parties may request the translation in French or English of the judgments by the courts or decisions rendered by any "body discharging quasi-judicial functions". The French text prevails over the English one, in case of any discrepancy, for any regulation to which section 133 of the Constitution Act of 1867 does not apply. The first version of the Charter provided that laws be enacted only in French. In 1979,

2624-436: The digital age, standard form contracts are used much more frequently than any other form. They can be legally valid if reasonable notice has been given and if the terms are not unreasonable. Unfair terms in non-negotiated agreements are often held void. In recognition of the consumer protection issues which may arise, many governments have passed specific laws relating to standard form contracts. These are generally enacted on

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2688-413: The execution of the contract and to change any fundamental charges or pricing, transfer of liability for the execution of the contract to a third party, unreasonable obligation to use the services of a third party or to limit, in any way, the choice of contracting third parties, denial of legal remedy, unreasonable limitations on contractual remedies or setting unreasonable conditions for the consummation of

2752-417: The first PQ government elected in the 1976 Quebec election , he was the guiding force behind Bill 101 , the legislation that placed restrictions on the use of English on public signs and in the workplace of large companies, and strengthened the position of French as the only official language in Quebec. Laurin resigned from his cabinet position on November 26, 1984 because of a disagreement with Lévesque on

2816-400: The form of, but are not limited to, forum selection clauses and mandatory arbitration clauses, which can limit or foreclose a party's access to the courts; and also liquidated damages clauses, which set a limit to the amount that can be recovered or require a party to pay a specific amount. They might be inefficient if they place the risk of a negative outcome, such as defective manufacturing, on

2880-432: The formation of contracts without negotiation with the other party. Standard conditions prepared by one of the parties shall be binding to the other if the latter was provided with an adequate opportunity of getting acquainted with the said conditions (Article 6.185. Standard conditions of contracts, Lithuanian Civil Code ). A consumer shall have the right to claim within the judicial procedure for invalidity of conditions in

2944-454: The future of the sovereignty movement. He resigned from his seat in the National Assembly on January 25, 1985. He was elected once again to the Assembly on September 12, 1994 but did not run in the 1998 election for health reasons. He died in 1999 after a long battle with cancer . Contracts of adhesion A standard form contract (sometimes referred to as a contract of adhesion,

3008-419: The government to exempt indigenous languages. The language of instruction from kindergarten to secondary school is French. (The instruction language is the language in which the classes are taught. Learning of English as a second language is mandatory for all children attending French school beginning in elementary school.) Articles 87, 88 and 89 provide for the use of Indigenous languages and Inuktitut as

3072-557: The language of instruction. The rate of introduction of French and English as languages of instruction is left to school committees and parents' committees. At the request of parents, the following may receive instruction in English: The original 1977 Charter provided for the English instruction not on the basis of a parent having received his instruction in English in Canada , but in Quebec only. This came to be amended following

3136-671: The meaning of the Trademarks Act may appear exclusively in a language other than French unless a French version has been registered. Where a trademark is displayed outside a building exclusively in a language other than French, a sufficient presence of French must also be ensured. A number of exceptions to the general rules for commercial products, signs and advertising: In some parts of Quebec, like Montreal, bilingual signs with French and English text of equal sizes can be seen (such as in historically English educational institutions, and in federally regulated businesses), although French

3200-570: The mission of "monitoring the linguistic situation in Quebec", promoting the official language and conducting research. In 2016–17, the budget of the OQLF was CA$ 24.1 million . The OQLF has seen, from time to time, criticism over some of its decisions, such as the 2013 controversy dubbed " pastagate ", in which it cited an Italian restaurant was cited for having on its menu Italian words like "pasta", "antipasti" and "calamari" rather than using their French equivalents. The OQLF has also objected to use of

3264-429: The need for buyers and sellers of goods and services to negotiate the details of a sale contract each time the product is sold. On the other hand, there is the potential for inefficient, and even unjust, terms to be accepted by signatories to these contracts. Such terms might be seen as unjust if they allow the seller to avoid all liability or unilaterally modify terms or terminate the contract. These terms often come in

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3328-418: The official language appropriate to the office for which he or she is applying. A non-official language may be used on signs and posters of the administration, but only for health or public safety reasons. Public utilities and professional orders must provide service in the official language and use it for their internal and general communications. Professional orders may issue permits only to persons who have

3392-488: The official language of Quebec. Prior to 1974, Quebec had no official language and was subject only to the requirements on the use of English and French contained in article 133 of the British North America Act, 1867 . The charter has been amended more than six times since 1977, each of which met with controversy in Quebec. Most recently, in 2022, the charter was amended (also covered in this article) by

3456-446: The official language. An employment contract must be provided in French first to a candidate if it falls under the definition of contracts of adhesion (i.e., a contract whose main provisions are not negotiable). It is only after the parties have examined the contract's French version that they may choose to be bound by its version in another language. Freely negotiated employment contracts may be drawn up in another language than French at

3520-424: The parties' express wish. In particular, an employer cannot dismiss, lay off, demote, transfer or take reprisals against, or impose any other penalty on, a staff member on the sole account of he or she being exclusively French-speaking or of possessing insufficient knowledge of a non-official language, or because that member demanded the respect of his or her right to work in French. As a job requirement, knowledge or

3584-614: The position that notice of exceptional terms is required for them to be incorporated. However the defendant successfully appealed to the High Court so currently there is no special treatment of standard form contracts in Australia. Since 1 January 2011, the Australian Consumer Law has been enacted in Australia at the national level, and due to a Council of Australian Governments (COAG) agreement this legislation

3648-487: The related provisions (articles 7 through 13) were rendered inoperative by a ruling of the Supreme Court of Canada in Attorney General of Quebec v. Blaikie ; however, Quebec responded by re-enacting in French and in English the Charter of the French Language , leaving intact articles 7 through 13. In 1993, the Charter 's provisions related to the language of the legislature and courts were made compliant with

3712-413: The remedy, denying or limiting the right for legal procedures, exclusive rights to decide on the location of the trial or arbitration, obligatory arbitration with unilaterally control over the arbitrators or the location of the arbitration and setting the holder of the burden of proof contrary to common law. The act also establishes a Standard Form Contract Court , chaired by a district judge and consists of

3776-514: The respect of francophone Quebecers' language rights, the Charter contains a number of key provisions and various regulations. In the first article of the Charter , French is declared the official language of Quebec. The French language was previously declared the sole official language of Quebec with the adoption of the Official Language Act in 1974. Quebec is constitutionally obliged nonetheless to provide English services in

3840-407: The right to access justice. Bill 178 was passed in direct response to the legal case of Ford v. Quebec (Attorney General) and invoked the notwithstanding clause to shield the articles on business signage from judicial review. Because the law could not be challenged in Canadian courts due the invocation of the notwithstanding clause, a group of English-rights activists instead filled a claim at

3904-429: The term "grilled cheese sandwich", insisting that they be called " sandwich de fromage fondu ", which literally translates to "melted cheese sandwich". Likewise, the OQLF objects to "on/off" switches and to the sale of "steaks", insisting that they be called " bifteck ", despite the fact that "steak" is the more commonly used term by Francophones." The Conseil supérieur de la langue française (Superior Council of

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3968-465: The terms. The reality of standard form contracting, however, means that many common law jurisdictions have developed special rules with respect to them. In general, in the event of an ambiguity, the courts will interpret standard form contracts contra proferentem (against the party that drafted the contract), as that party (and only that party) had the ability to draft the contract to remove ambiguity. Standard form contracts are generally enforceable in

4032-671: Was a psychiatrist and Parti Québécois (PQ) politician in the Canadian province of Quebec . A MNA member for the riding of Bourget , he is considered the father of Quebec's language law known informally as " Bill 101 ". Born in Charlemagne, Quebec , Laurin obtained a degree in psychiatry from the Université de Montréal where he came under the influence of the Roman Catholic priest, Lionel Groulx . After earning his degree, Laurin went to Boston , Massachusetts , in

4096-552: Was founded in May 1982 and operated until 2005. It was mainly through this civil association that a number of lawyers have challenged the constitutionality of Quebec's territorial language policy. A judge temporarily suspended two articles of Bill 96. The articles mandated companies to pay for the translation into French of legal documentation. Quebec Superior Court Justice Chantal Corriveau decided that requiring companies to pay for certified translation might delay some anglophone bodies from

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