By Ningsi Mei, Lawyer & CEO of EqualDocs

I've practised law in Quebec for over ten years. And one of the questions I get most often from founders and small business owners isn't about a specific clause or a specific deal — it's this:

"Why does everyone keep saying Quebec is different? How different can it really be?"

The honest answer: very different. Different enough that a contract drafted for an Ontario business can create real legal exposure when used in Quebec. Different enough that an AI legal tool built for the US market may give you advice that simply doesn't apply here.

This isn't a technicality. It's the foundation of how law works in this province — and understanding it is one of the most important things you can do to protect your business.

Quebec Runs on Civil Law. The Rest of Canada Does Not.

Canada has two legal systems running in parallel. Nine provinces and the three territories operate under common law — a system inherited from England, where judges build law over time through precedents and decisions. Quebec operates under civil law, a system rooted in the French and Roman legal tradition, where the rules are written down in a comprehensive code.

That code is the Code civil du Québec — and it governs almost every private relationship in the province: contracts, property, family, and civil liability.

What does this mean in practice?

In common law provinces, if something isn't written in your contract, courts look at past decisions to fill the gaps. In Quebec, courts look at the Code civil first. The same silence in a contract can mean something completely different depending on which side of the Ontario-Quebec border you're on.

Example: Under the Code civil, a party who breaches a contract may be liable for damages that were foreseeable at the time of contracting — similar to common law, but the test and its application differ in ways that matter when you're in a dispute. Limitation periods, good faith obligations, and implied warranty rules all work differently here.

If your standard contract template came from a Canadian legal website written for common law provinces — or from a US-based AI tool — it may not reflect how Quebec courts will actually interpret it.

Bill 96: The French Language Requirement That Changed Everything

In June 2022, Quebec enacted Bill 96 — an update to the Charte de la langue française (Charter of the French Language). Its effects on business contracts are significant and still being felt.

Here's what you need to know:

Employment contracts must be offered in French first. If you hire someone in Quebec, you are now required to provide their employment contract in French before offering it in any other language. The employee can then choose to receive it in another language — but you must make the French version available first. Skipping this step can expose you to complaints and potential liability.

Consumer contracts must be in French. If you sell products or services to consumers in Quebec, your contracts, invoices, and standard forms must be available in French.

Commercial contracts between businesses are more flexible — both parties can agree to contract in English — but the French requirement applies broadly to employment and consumer-facing documents.

Why this matters right now: Many small businesses are still using contract templates that were never updated for Bill 96. If you've hired anyone in Quebec in the last two years using an English-only offer letter without a French version available, you may have a compliance gap.

Law 25: Quebec's Privacy Law Is Stricter Than You Think

If you collect personal information about customers, employees, or users — and every business does — Quebec's Law 25 (formally, An Act to modernize legislative provisions as regards the protection of personal information) applies to you.

Law 25 came into full force in September 2023 and is widely considered the strictest privacy legislation in Canada, modelled partly on Europe's GDPR.

Key requirements that affect contracts:

• Confidentiality clauses in employment and service contracts need to be consistent with Law 25 data handling obligations.
• If you share personal data with a third party (a contractor, a supplier, a platform), you need a written agreement confirming they protect it appropriately.
• Data breach notification requirements are more stringent than under federal PIPEDA — and non-compliance carries serious penalties.

Most standard NDA and service agreement templates don't include Law 25-compliant data handling clauses. This is a gap that creates real exposure.

Quebec Employment Law: Different from Every Other Province

The Loi sur les normes du travail (Act Respecting Labour Standards) sets minimum standards for employment in Quebec — and several of them are stricter or simply different from what you'd find in Ontario or BC.

A few that catch employers off guard:

Notice of termination is calculated differently in Quebec. The required notice period depends on continuous service and must be given in writing. Failing to give adequate written notice — or not documenting it properly — can result in claims at the Commission des normes, de l'équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST).

Psychological harassment has been a recognized cause of action in Quebec employment law since 2004 — long before other provinces caught up. Your employment contracts and workplace policies need to reflect this.

Fixed-term contracts are treated strictly. If you hire someone on a fixed-term contract but keep renewing it or treating them like a permanent employee, Quebec courts may consider the employment to be indeterminate — with all the termination rights that come with it.

The Practical Problem: Most Templates and Tools Weren't Built for This

Here's where I want to be direct with you, as a lawyer and as a founder.

The legal templates you find on Google, the AI legal tools built for the US market, and even many Canadian legal platforms were not designed with the Code civil du Québec, Bill 96, Law 25, and Quebec employment standards in mind.

That doesn't mean they're useless. It means you need to know what they're missing — and fill those gaps.

The challenges I see most often:

• Employment offer letters in English only — non-compliant under Bill 96
• NDAs without Law 25 data handling provisions — leaves you exposed on privacy
• Service contracts using common law boilerplate — may be interpreted differently by Quebec courts
• Termination clauses that don't account for Quebec notice requirements — a frequent source of disputes

How EqualDocs Fits the Quebec Business Reality

EqualDocs was built in Montréal. I didn't design it for a generic Canadian market — I designed it for the legal reality I've seen working with Quebec businesses every day.

Here's what that means concretely:

Bilingual drafting, not just translation. EqualDocs supports contract drafting in French and English. You can produce a compliant French version of an employment offer and an English version for review — the way Bill 96 actually requires.

Quebec context built in. When you describe a contract scenario in Quebec — an employment offer, a commercial lease, a supplier NDA — EqualDocs drafts with awareness of the Code civil, Quebec employment standards, and Law 25 considerations, not just generic Canadian or US terms.

Both parties in one platform. One of the most common contract problems in Quebec SMEs isn't the drafting — it's the back-and-forth. A lease gets emailed as a PDF, marked up in Word, emailed back, and the versions get confused. EqualDocs lets both parties work on the same document, propose changes, and reach agreement without the chaos.

Free to start. Because small businesses in Quebec shouldn't have to choose between legal protection and affordability.

The Bottom Line

Quebec law is not harder than common law — it's just different. And once you understand the key differences, you can build contracts that actually protect you.

The three things every Quebec business owner should act on this week:

1. Check your employment contracts — do they comply with Bill 96? Is a French version available?
2. Review your NDAs and service agreements — do they include Law 25-compliant data handling clauses?
3. Know your termination obligations — Quebec notice requirements are strict and written notice matters.

EqualDocs can help you address all three — in French, in English, or both.

Try it free at equaldocs.com

Pourquoi le droit québécois est différent — et ce que ça signifie pour vos contrats

Par Ningsi Mei, avocate et PDG d'EqualDocs

J'exerce le droit au Québec depuis plus de dix ans. Et l'une des questions que je reçois le plus souvent des fondateurs et propriétaires de PME n'est pas sur une clause précise ou une transaction spécifique — c'est celle-ci :

« Pourquoi tout le monde dit que le Québec est différent? En quoi c'est vraiment différent? »

La réponse honnête : très différent. Assez différent pour qu'un contrat rédigé pour une entreprise ontarienne crée une vraie exposition juridique au Québec.

Le Québec fonctionne sous le droit civil. Le reste du Canada, non.

Le Canada a deux systèmes juridiques en parallèle. Neuf provinces fonctionnent sous la common law — un système hérité de l'Angleterre. Le Québec fonctionne sous le droit civil, un système ancré dans la tradition juridique française et romaine, où les règles sont consignées dans un code exhaustif : le Code civil du Québec.

Ce que ça signifie concrètement : si votre modèle de contrat vient d'un site juridique canadien rédigé pour les provinces de common law — ou d'un outil IA américain — il peut ne pas refléter la façon dont les tribunaux québécois l'interpréteront.

La Loi 96 : l'exigence du français qui a tout changé

En 2022, le Québec a adopté la Loi 96 — une mise à jour de la Charte de la langue française. Son impact sur les contrats d'affaires est significatif :

• Les contrats de travail doivent être offerts en français en premier. Si vous embauchez quelqu'un au Québec, vous devez fournir son contrat en français avant de l'offrir dans une autre langue.
• Les contrats avec les consommateurs doivent être disponibles en français.

Beaucoup de PME utilisent encore des modèles jamais mis à jour pour la Loi 96. C'est une lacune de conformité réelle.

La Loi 25 : la loi sur la vie privée la plus stricte au Canada

La Loi 25 est entrée en vigueur en septembre 2023. Elle est considérée comme la législation sur la protection des renseignements personnels la plus stricte au Canada.

Ce qui touche vos contrats :

• Les clauses de confidentialité dans vos contrats d'emploi et de service doivent être cohérentes avec les obligations de la Loi 25.
• Si vous partagez des données personnelles avec un tiers, vous avez besoin d'un accord écrit.
• La plupart des modèles standard de NDA n'incluent pas de clauses conformes à la Loi 25.

Comment EqualDocs répond à la réalité juridique québécoise

EqualDocs a été fondé à Montréal. Pas pour un marché canadien générique — pour la réalité juridique que j'ai vécue en travaillant avec des entreprises québécoises.

• Rédaction bilingue, pas seulement traduction — produisez une version française conforme et une version anglaise pour révision, tel que la Loi 96 le requiert.
• Contexte québécois intégré — Code civil, normes du travail, Loi 25.
• Les deux parties dans une seule plateforme — fini les PDF par courriel et les versions confuses.
• Gratuit pour commencer.

Essayez gratuitement sur equaldocs.com