The General Principle of the Prohibition of Abuse of Rights: A Critical Position on Its Role in a Codified European Contract Law

Abstract

Abstract: The principle of prohibition of abuse of rights aims to correct the application of a rule of law on the basis of standards such as good faith, fairness, and justice if, despite formal observance of the conditions of the rule, the objective of that rule has not been achieved. This principle amounts to a general principle of Union law. First, a common concept of abuse of rights exists in the legal traditions of the Member States. Second, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has gradually built a Union concept of abuse of rights (Emsland-Stärke, Halifax, Kofoed). However, the general principle of prohibition of abuse of rights is not expressly incorporated into the codification projects on European contract law. This principle constitutes a specific application of the general duty of good faith and fair dealing in its limitative function. In principle, this approach is valid, more specifically from the perspective of the Civil Law traditions where the prohibition of abuse of rights is likewise considered as one of the applications of the more general and autonomous limitative function of good faith (e.g., Germany and the Netherlands). However, an express incorporation of the principle of prohibition of abuse of rights would be advisable from the perspective of the Civil Law traditions where the limitative function of good faith is not autonomous but exclusively linked to the general principle prohibiting the abuse of rights (e.g., Belgium and France). Such an incorporation would be in line with the recognition of a general principle of Union law prohibiting the abuse of rights.