Les « petites républiques » : les compagnies et la mise en place du droit corporatif moderne au Québec au milieu du 19e siècle

Abstract

This article examines the establishment of modern corporate law in Lower Canada during the mid-19th century. Corporate law, the hearth of modern capitalism, redefined the relationship between government and profit-making associations. However, the political / ideological context in which it was introduced revealed a clear conflict between individual interests and association interests. The deeper meaning of corporate law is inherent in the resolution of this conflict. At another level, this article examines the considerable gap between the creation of a modern set of legal rules to oversee powerful associations, and effective use of their provisions. It concludes with a more general discussion of the conditions under which corporate law was created and applied in the 19th century.