Essay on a relational theory of contract.

Summary The definition of the contract used by French law does not allow for a unitary consideration of this notion. Moreover, the legal dimensions of the contract, whether economic or sociological, are essential for the parties but often ignored by the law. The contractual model proposed by the general theory is therefore only relative. However, it is precisely this observation, also made in English and American law, that has given rise to recontextualizing theories of the contract, including the relational theory of I. Macneil. Inspired by the work of this author and that of H. Collins, we propose, first, to remodel the general theory of contract in order to allow the law to apprehend the entire contractual context and thus respect the object sought by the parties. Second, we suggest that the competences and powers of judges be adapted to facilitate the implementation of this re-reading of the contract.