Good Faith Duties in Contract Performance

Abstract

© 2015 Faculty of Law, Oxford University. There has been an ongoing debate in common law countries about the merits of recognising a general obligation to act in good faith in the performance of contracts. Courts in England, Australia, Canada and Singapore have responded differently to this possibility. However, courts in those jurisdictions have been prepared to imply a similar bundle of more specific duties that are increasingly seen as expressing the core content of any general principle of good faith in contract law. The ‘good faith’ duties promote loyalty or fidelity to the contractual relationship, primarily by requiring honesty and cooperation in contract performance and by precluding..