Invalidity, ineffectiveness, and non-existent legal ransactions in labour law

Abstract

Validity and invalidity are not synonymous concepts; they cover different legal content and result in different legal consequences as well. In the case of non-existent contracts, there is no consent between the parties on the essential elements of the contract. In such cases, contracts either have no legal effect at all or we can speak about some special legal effect. Though the invalidity system of labour law is based on civil law, specific characteristics of labour law as an independent field of law are also taken into account. It is a fundamental difference that, unlike civil invalidity, the restitution of the original situation is not possible because of the long-term nature of the legal relationship. Instead, labour law imposes a remedy on the parties and if it is not possible, termination of employment is mandatory. Incidentally, invalidity under labour law also means incapacity to produce the intended legal effect and we distinguish between two different types of invalidity: nullity and voidability. In the event of termination of a contract, an agreement between the parties shall be concluded and shall remain in force, however, for some reason, it can not produce legal effects between the parties. Therefore, the existence and validity of the contract is a precondition for invalidity.