Against allegations that the 1820 draft of a Civil code for the Kingdom of the Netherlands was too doctrinal and theoretical, one of J.M. Kemper's arguments during the parliamentary discussions consisted in pointing out that far from being academic, the provisions of the draft which further elaborated on general principles expressed in the French Civil Code were in fact meant to settle through legislation controversies which had appeared in French legal practice and case law after the enactment of that code. Kemper's unsuccessful argumentation was especially developed in the course of the debate in the Lower House on the draft's preliminary articles relating to (i) the non-retrospective effect of statutes and (ii) nullity as a default-sanction for violation of statutory rules.