McCarthy Tétrault Advance™ A PRIMER ON CONTRACTUAL INTERPRETATION GEOFF R. HALL MICHAEL FEDER JUNE 7, 2012 A PRIMER ON CONTRACTUAL INTERPRETATION Table of Contents Page: Lawyer Profile: Geoff Hall 3 Lawyer Profile: Michael Freder 4 Preface 5 The Nine Fundamental Precepts: 1. Words and their context 5 2. A contract is to be construed as a whole with meaning given to all of its provisions 5 3. The factual matrix 6 4. Interpretation is an objective exercise 6 5. Commercial efficacy 6 6. Every effort should be made to find a meaning 7 7. A contract is to be interpreted as of the date it was made 7 8.The parol evidence rule 7 9.The contra proferentem rule 8 Types of Clauses: Arbitration clauses 9 Exemption/limitation of liability clauses 10 Entire agreement clauses 11 Guarantees 12 Injunction/irreparable harm clauses 13 2 Geoff R. Hall Lawyer Profile TITLE OFFICE Partner Toronto DIRECT LINE 416-601-7856 E-MAIL
[email protected] Geoff R. Hall is a partner in the Litigation Group based in our Toronto office. Mr. Hall's practice focuses primarily on corporate/commercial litigation, and he also has extensive experience in bankruptcy/restructuring litigation, constitutional and administrative law litigation. Mr. Hall holds a B.A. from McGill University (1987, Gold Medallist in Economics), an M.A. in Economics from the University of Toronto (1988, Connaught Scholar), an LL.B. from the University of Toronto (1991, Silver Medallist), and an LL.M. from Harvard Law School (1996). Mr. Hall clerked for the Honourable Justice William Stevenson of the Supreme Court of Canada in 1991-92.