ABSTRACT
The formulation ‘juristic reason’ is highly reminiscent of civilian doctrine, in particular the Roman condictio sine causa and § 812 I in German law. However, as Lionel Smith has pointed out, it would be simplistic to assume that here the civil law influence of Quebec has simply ‘contaminated’ Canadian common law. As Smith explains, in Quebec law the claim for réception de l’indu, or receipt of a benefit that was not due, occupies most of the field. This claim, however, is oriented towards specific reasons for restitution, as it requires a claimant to show that he paid under mistake or duress,5 while the general enrichment claim, a judicial development of the Roman actio de in rem verso6 later codified
in the Civil Code of Quebec,7 which does work on a ‘sans cause’ basis, is merely of subsidiary application.8
