L’adaptation du droit des contrats d’origine internationale et communautaire à la dématérialisation des échanges

Abstract

When confronted with the dematerialisation of economic exchanges, jurists first refer to the traditional requirements of contract law, consequently initiating the search for technical means to meet those requirements. In practice, however, it appears that this search also leads to a useful and stimulating updating of the existing law, both in terms of concepts and legal regimes. Apart from those substantive adaptations, further issues and challenges are to be taken into account. First, the political challenges resulting from the contingencies of multilateral negotiations at the international level will concretely favour the design of new norms rather than the revision of old ones. Second, technical challenges will encourage the development of technology-neutral norms that are expected to combine with the highly evolving technical standards. Eventually, economic challenges call for the search for new business models and the progressive selection of the most effective ones.