Civil Transactions in Breach of Formality, Notarization, and Authentication Requirements under Vietnamese Civil Law

Under civil law, the form of a transaction is considered one of the constitutive elements for the validity of a civil transaction when required by law. Not all violations of formal, notarization, and authentication requirements in civil transactions give rise to legal consequences. The 2015 Civil Code of Vietnam adopts a more flexible approach than earlier versions, notably through Article 129, which introduces a “remedial mechanism” allowing civil transactions to be upheld if one party has fulfilled at least two-thirds of their obligations. This article analyses the current Vietnamese civil law regulations regarding civil transactions that do not comply with form requirements and notarization/authentication procedures, and examines the shortcomings in their practical enforcement. Based on this analysis, the authors propose legal reforms to strike a balance between adherence to form and notarization, authentication procedures requirements, and voluntariness in civil transactions.