On The Protection Of The Reliance Interest In Contract

The orientation of the present-day civil law has transferred from individual to society. Moreover, legists states that modern contract relationship is a kind of social relationship established on the basis of reliance that contract law is supposed to protect, for which is not only good to both parties' lawful rights and benefits and the order of the market economy but it is of significance to the establishment and maintenance of social good faith as well, therefore the theory about the protection of reliance interest has come into being. The study on the theory of reliance interest protection has been conducted for years in foreign countries with fruitful achievement, Compared to which, the study in China is relatively unsubstantial and laws on it are relatively unitary. Therefore, the thesis, starting with the knowledge of reliance interest in the civil law system and combining with related theories in the common law system, studies and probes into the theory of reliance interest protection and sets forth the author's personal opinion on it with the expectation that it may contribute to the enhancement of theory so that it may be beneficial to the construction of the system of reliance interest protection as well as the legal practice in our country. The foundation of studying the reliance interest protection is to exemplify the concepts of reliance and reliance interest. The author holds that the reliance interest means the related interest one party of the contract anticipates to get by properly relying on the other party's intention or the established contract, taking certain action and defraying the transaction cost. Based on which, the thesis further proposes the theoretical basis of reliance interest, i.e. the protection of the reliance interest is the reification of good faith principle in the contract law and the internal reason why the modern contract law prescribes the obligation of the contract. The author believes that the contract law must protect the reliance interest in the whole process of the transaction when discussing about the application of the theory of reliance interest protection, which covers a wide range of the making, the subscription, the performance of a contract as well as the situations coming forth after it is performed or dissolved. In addition to the compensation for damages, in the thesis, the author also puts forward some techniques of protecting the reliance interest which include the remediation of the valid element or effect element, compulsory contracting and giving the rights of pleadings to the parties.