A contract may be construed either before or after there has been a breach thereof.
Art. 1873.Construction of Contract
Book II. Ordinary Proceedings · Title VI. Judgments · Chapter 2. Declaratory Judgments · Amendment history unavailable · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 1873 confirms that a party may ask a Louisiana court to construe a contract either before any breach has occurred or after one has already happened.
Full Text of Art. 1873
Plain-English Summary
Article 1873 is short, and its point is timing. A contract may be construed before there has been a breach, or after. That removes any doubt about whether a party has to wait for something to go wrong before asking a court what a contract means.
The value of that flexibility is practical. Two parties who disagree about what a clause requires can get an answer before either side acts on its own reading and risks turning a disagreement into a breach. A party who has already been accused of breaching a contract can equally ask a court to construe the disputed language as part of sorting out what happened.
Article 1873 works as one of the specific applications Article 1872 opens the door to, confirming that the general power to construe a contract under this chapter is not limited by when the request is made.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to wait until a contract is breached to have it construed under Louisiana law?
No. Article 1873 allows a contract to be construed either before or after a breach has occurred.
Can Article 1873 be used after a contract has already been broken?
Yes. The article covers construction of a contract after a breach just as much as before one.
Is Article 1873 a separate cause of action from Article 1872?
No. It is a specific application of the broader authority Article 1872 gives to interested persons to have a written contract construed.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
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