Contratcs and covid-19: the remedies offered by the Italian civil Code in a comparative perspective

Abstract

The essay deals with the problem of unforeseen circumstances caused by Covid-19 in contracts. It compares the Italian and Spanish legal systems and European contract law. In the first and second part, the author questions if general remedies of impossibility of performance and excessive onerousness are useful and effective. In the last part the author deals with the renegotiation of the contract. The essay analyses if the remedy is applicable in Italy and Spain, where no obligation to renegotiate the contract is provided by Civil Codes, and deals with the effectiveness of this remedy for the challenges of the pandemic and in general for unforeseen circumstances.