In Bank of Nova Scotia v. Angelica-Whitewear Ltd., 1987 CanLII 78 (SCC), [1987] 1 S.C.R. 59, 73 N.R. 158, Mr. Justice Le Dain summarized the principle of autonomy in the following fashion, at p. 70: The fundamental principle governing documentary letters of credit and the characteristic which gives them their international commercial utility and efficacy is that the obligation of the issuing bank to honour a draft on a credit when it is accompanied by documents which appear on their face to be in accordance with the terms and conditions of the credit is independent of the performance of the underlying contract for which the credit was issued. Disputes between the parties to the underlying contract concerning its performance cannot as a general rule justify a refusal by an issuing bank to honour a draft which is accompanied by apparently conforming documents. This principle is referred to as the autonomy of documentary credits.
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