formalities
formalitiesstatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
Marriage-contract formA marriage contract is made by notarial act, except where the Code permits another form. This is not Ontario witnessing and not a U.S. acknowledgment.
- Photos and unsigned templates are not a completed domestic contract.
- If the file calls itself a prenup, the formation question is still this province’s marriage-contract form, not California Fam. Code or Sambolagen.
acknowledgment
acknowledgmentstatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
Witnesses, notaries, and acknowledgementsA marriage contract is made by notarial act, except where the Code permits another form. This is not Ontario witnessing and not a U.S. acknowledgment.
- Québec marriage contracts are typically notarial acts. An Ontario-style two-witness page is the wrong formality story.
property
propertystatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
Default property regime for spousesDefault regime is partnership of acquests unless a marriage contract chooses another permitted regime. Family patrimony (family residence, furniture, vehicles, certain retirement rights) is a separate public-order mass.
- The contract’s job is usually to modify or confirm that default, within what the statute lets parties do.
- Do not apply Ontario FLA equalization, British Columbia FLA unmarried-spouse property, or U.S. UPAA formalities to Québec. French and English versions of the Code are official; this pack cites the English LégisQuébec text.
permitted_subjects
permitted subjectsstatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
What this instrument can try to coverA marriage contract typically addresses property, debts, and sometimes support between spouses. Public-order limits (Québec family patrimony; child support everywhere) still apply.
- Estate, beneficiary, and corporate-share clauses may need other instruments. Flag them as possibly outside this pack’s core statute.
spousal_support
spousal supportstatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
Support language versus support lawSupport between spouses follows the Code and federal divorce law where applicable. A marriage contract is not a complete substitute for support analysis.
- Federal Divorce Act analysis for married spouses is a gap this pack flags rather than filling from memory.
child_support
child supportstatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
Children are not ordinary contract subjectsChild support and parental authority are not ordinary contractual subjects. Flag any child waiver.
- Parenting time, custody labels, and child-support waivers should be routed to a lawyer. This product does not decide them.
voluntariness
voluntarinessstatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
Setting aside, disclosure, and adviceFamily patrimony rules are of public order. Spouses cannot opt out of family patrimony by a marriage contract the way common-law provinces let spouses contract around equalization. Lesion, consent, and notarial formalities are the Québec questions—not s. 56(4) FLA.
- Independent legal advice certificates, if attached, are evidence. They are not U.S. statutory forms and they do not decide the case.
- Financial schedules referenced but not in the upload are missing-exhibit questions, not proof of disclosure.
financial_disclosure
financial disclosurestatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
Financial disclosure as a fairness factCanadian family agreements are often judged partly on whether each party knew the assets and debts. This pack does not invent a U.S. statutory disclosure exhibit list.
- If the contract recites schedules that are not in the file, say so. Do not invent net-worth numbers from intake.
independent_counsel
independent counselstatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
Independent legal adviceCanadian family agreements often stand or fall partly on whether each party could get advice. That is not a uniform statutory certificate across provinces, and Québec notarial counseling is a different professional model from common-law ILA letters.
- Absence of an ILA letter is not automatic invalidity. Presence of a letter is not automatic validity.
timing
timingstatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
Timing around the weddingA first draft delivered immediately before a wedding is a voluntariness and understanding fact. Canada does not use a single U.S.-style statutory waiting period in these packs.
- Effective-date language in the contract is not proof the statutory regime attached on that date.
limitations
limitationsstatute
Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. CCQ-1991, arts. 391, 414–426, 431–443
What this pack will not inventDo not apply Ontario FLA equalization, British Columbia FLA unmarried-spouse property, or U.S. UPAA formalities to Québec. French and English versions of the Code are official; this pack cites the English LégisQuébec text.
- Conflicts of laws if the couple later lives in another province or country are a gap.
- Tax, immigration, and Indigenous family-law systems are not fully catalogued here.