International Review of Law (May 2021)
Impact of the novel Coronavirus pandemic on the debtor's commitment to the implementation of their liabilities - A Comparative analytical study in the Qatari and French Laws
Abstract
The Coronavirus pandemic, and the entailed measures taken by governments to limit its spread, have raised the question of what mechanisms the civil law can offer to establish a balance between the creditor's right to request a specific enforcement from one hand, and the debtor's right to ask for non-execution if the conditions become impossible or too burdensome on the other hand. Despite the important role of the Force Majeure and Emergency circumstances (Hardship) theories in offering a better solution to this problem, the in-depth study has proven that not only the Term theory (grace period) could play an equally important role, but it also can be a better solution to maintain the contractual relationship and balance between both creditor’s and debtor's rights. This study is divided into three chapters: The first presents the theory of emergency circumstances (hardship) as a mechanism to deal with the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic, the second addresses the theory of force majeure as a mechanism to deal with the effects of the pandemic and the third is dedicated to the theory of term as a mechanism to counter its effects.
