不定期继续性合同任意解除的生效时点

Effective Point of Arbitrary Termination of Indefinite Continuous Contract

《民法典》第563条第2款规定了不定期继续性合同的任意解除制度,该制度最核心的问题是确定合同解除的时点。该款“当事人可以随时解除合同”的表述存在歧义,极易引发误解,法律和司法解释规定的不明确导致学界观点模糊不清,司法裁判立场也存在明显差异。不定期继续性合同任意解除的生效时点应为解除通知到达对方当事人后的合理期限届满时,从而有利于保护相对方合理信赖,给予相对方必要准备时间,合理规避损害赔偿的难题。具体衡量不定期继续性合同任意解除的生效时点,应从合同持续时间与履行情况、当事人对合同的依赖程度、寻求替代交易的难易程度几方面进行客观衡量,妥善平衡合同双方当事人的利益。

The determination of the effective point of the arbitrary termination of the indefinite continuous contract not only involves the protection of the reliance interests of the contractual counterparty,whether the contractual counterparty has enough preparation time to seek for a substitute transaction,but also directly affects whether the party that terminates the contract needs to bear the responsibility of damages as well as the scope of the damages,which is the most important issue in this regime.The expression “the parties may rescind the contract at any time” in this paragraph is ambiguous,and it is very easy for the parties and the judge to have the misunderstanding that “the parties may at any time notify the other party or sue for rescission of the contract,and the contract will be rescinded as soon as the notice of rescission or a copy of the statement of claim reaches the other party”.Lack of clarity in legal and judicial interpretations leads to ambiguity of academic views,and there is also a marked difference in the position of judicial decisions.Most of the judges determined that the contract is terminated when the notice reaches the other party,and there is a lack of scientific and reasonable judgment on the determination of “reasonable period”,and the problem of “different judgments in the same case” is serious,which results in the interests of the counterparty of the contract being unprotected.The notice of arbitrary termination of indefinite continuous contract is a notice of termination with an effective period,and the notice of termination is not effective until the expiration of a reasonable period.The effective point of arbitrary termination of indefinite continuous contract shall be the expiration of a reasonable period after the notice of termination reaches the other party.First,it provides the most direct and adequate protection for the reasonable reliance of the other party to the contract on the continuance of the contractual relationship for a reasonable period.Secondly,it gives the other party to the contract the necessary preparation time to seek a substitute transaction,avoids the sudden termination of the contract,which will cause the other party to lose the basis of daily life and business,and maintains the stability of the contractual relationship.Thirdly,it can reasonably avoid the complex issue of damages due to failure to give notice within a reasonable period.In the absence of either agreement by the parties or special provisions of the law,the judge shall objectively measure the “reasonable period” in terms of the duration and performance of the contract,the degree of reliance of the parties on the contract,and the ease or difficulty of finding a substitute transaction,to strike a proper balance between the interests of the parties to the contract.The longer the duration and the better the performance of the indefinite continuous contract,the higher the degree of reliance of the other party on the contract,and the more difficult it is for the other party to seek a substitute transaction,the longer the reasonable period should be.To summarize,the effective point of the arbitrary termination of indefinite continuous contract is the expiration of a reasonable period of time after the notice reaches the other party,and the “reasonable period” should be scientifically and reasonably determined,so as to measure the time of termination of the contract,to strike a proper balance between the principle of strict adherence to the contract and the right of individual autonomy,and to strike a proper balance between the interests of both parties to the contract.