NCA Quebec Civil Law Basics 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In Quebec property law, what is the difference between 'immovables' and 'movables' under the CCQ?
- Immovables are property that cannot physically move; movables are property that can be carried
- Immovables include land and anything permanently attached to or incorporated into land; movables are all other property (Correct answer)
- Immovables are registered property; movables are unregistered property
- The distinction only applies to property owned by natural persons, not legal persons
Correct answer: Immovables include land and anything permanently attached to or incorporated into land; movables are all other property
Under CCQ art. 900–907, immovables include land, buildings, and anything permanently incorporated into or attached to land, as well as rights attached to immovables. All other property (goods, claims, intellectual property) is movable.
Question 2: Under the CCQ, what is the concept of 'patrimony' (patrimoine)?
- Property inherited from ancestors
- The entirety of a person's property and obligations, forming a universality of rights and liabilities (Correct answer)
- Only the immovable property of a legal person
- A segregated fund held in trust for creditors
Correct answer: The entirety of a person's property and obligations, forming a universality of rights and liabilities
Under CCQ art. 2, every person has a patrimony: the universality of their property (assets) and obligations (liabilities). The patrimony is indivisible and inseparable from the person. Certain property (e.g., family patrimony) can be constituted as a separate patrimony.
Question 3: The concept of 'emphyteusis' under Quebec civil law is best described as:
- A perpetual lease that transfers full ownership to the tenant
- A long-term real right granted to a person to use and enjoy an immovable for a term of 10 to 100 years on condition of making improvements (Correct answer)
- A mortgage on commercial property
- A right of pre-emption over neighbouring land
Correct answer: A long-term real right granted to a person to use and enjoy an immovable for a term of 10 to 100 years on condition of making improvements
Emphyteusis (CCQ arts. 1195–1211) is a real right allowing the emphyteutic lessee to use and enjoy the immovable for 10 to 100 years on condition of improving it. It is more expansive than a lease because it creates a real right enforceable against third parties.
Question 4: In Quebec family law under the CCQ, what is the 'family patrimony' (patrimoine familial)?
- All property owned by either spouse at the time of marriage
- A mandatory regime applying to all married and civil union spouses that requires equal division of the value of certain family assets (family residence, automobiles, RRSPs, QPP benefits) upon dissolution (Correct answer)
- A trust fund created for the benefit of children of the marriage
- Property held jointly by the spouses, excluding separate property
Correct answer: A mandatory regime applying to all married and civil union spouses that requires equal division of the value of certain family assets (family residence, automobiles, RRSPs, QPP benefits) upon dissolution
Articles 414–426 of the CCQ establish the family patrimony—a mandatory regime (cannot be contracted out of) requiring equal division of the net value of the family residence, furniture, family automobiles, retirement plan benefits (RRSP, QPP) upon divorce, death, or annulment.
Question 5: Under Quebec law, what is the legal effect of a 'declaration of family residence' (déclaration de résidence familiale) under the CCQ?
- It registers the property in both spouses' names
- It prevents the declaring spouse's partner from alienating or hypothecating the family residence without the other spouse's consent (Correct answer)
- It exempts the property from creditors' seizure
- It establishes the property as jointly owned under the law of co-ownership
Correct answer: It prevents the declaring spouse's partner from alienating or hypothecating the family residence without the other spouse's consent
CCQ art. 404–408 allow a spouse to file a declaration of family residence. Once filed, the other spouse cannot alienate, hypothecate, or otherwise encumber the family residence without the consenting spouse's authorization. This protects the family residence.
Question 6: In Quebec succession law, what is a 'reserved portion' (réserve héréditaire) compared to common law?
- Quebec has a forced heirship rule reserving a fixed portion of the estate for children
- Quebec does not have forced heirship—testators have complete freedom to disinherit their children (Correct answer)
- Quebec reserves 50% of the estate for the surviving spouse automatically
- Quebec law requires equal distribution among all legal heirs regardless of a will
Correct answer: Quebec does not have forced heirship—testators have complete freedom to disinherit their children
Unlike many European civil law systems with forced heirship (réserve héréditaire), Quebec abandoned its forced heirship provisions in 1994. The CCQ gives testators near-complete freedom of testation—children have no guaranteed forced share, though surviving spouses may have claims through the family patrimony and matrimonial regime.
NCA Quebec Civil Law Basics 2
In Quebec property law, what is the difference between 'immovables' and 'movables' under the CCQ?