The Transformation Of Private Law Principles Of Contract And Tort As European And International Law

Eminent lawyers from academia, international judiciary and legal practice join up to honour Professor Mads Andenas KC (Hon). Contributions form a cutting edge volume across legal disciplines led by an advisory editorial committee including Prof. Guido Alpa, Prof. Carl Baudenbacher, Prof. Eirik Bjorge, Prof. Giuseppe Conte and Prof. Duncan Fairgrieve. The general private law of tort and delict is subject to a transformation where the traditional national framework is becoming gradually less relevant. Much of the modernisation of private law takes place not at the domestic level but at a European or international level such as in international commercial conventions or EU consumer protection legislation. Remedies in regulatory law are becoming ever more important. The role of the European Court of Justice in developing general principles of contract and tort is ever increasing. Tort liability is an important subject of international conventions with the case law of the International Court of Justice developing general principles of tort liability in public international law.

EU Private Law and the CISG examines selected EU directives in the field of private law and their effects on the national private law systems of several EU Member States and discusses certain specific concepts of the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) in light of the CISG’s recent fortieth anniversary. The most prominent influence of EU law on national private law systems is in the area of the law of obligations, thus the book focuses on several EU private law directives that cover the issues belonging to contract and tort law, as interpreted in the case law of the Court of Justice of the EU. EU private law concepts need to be interpreted autonomously and uniformly rather than through the lens of national private law systems. The same is true for the CISG which has not only been one of the most successful instruments of the international trade law unification but had also influenced both the EU private law and domestic laws. In Part I, focused on the EU private law and its effects for national laws, chapters examine the recent Digital Content and Services Directive and its likely impact on the contract law of the UK and Ireland, the role aggressive commercial practices play in EU banking and credit legislation, the applicability of the EU private international law rules to collective redress, the unfair contract terms regime of the Late Payment Directive and its transposition into Croatian law, the implementation of the Commercial Agency Directive in Denmark, Estonia and Germany, and disgorgement of profits as remedy provided in the Trade Secrets Directive. In Part II, dealing with selected CISG issues, chapters discuss the autonomous interpretation of CISG’s concept of sale by auction and its notion of intellectual property, as well as the CISG’s principle of freedom of form and the possibility for reservations with the effect of its exclusion. The book will be of interest to legal scholars in the field of EU private law and international trade law, as well as to the students, practitioners, members of law reform bodies, and civil servants in Europe, and beyond.

Tort law is one of the core areas of European private law, in particular in the field of business law. However, it often receives less attention than the well-known and widely published developments in the field of European contract law. In order to direct more attention to this important subject, an intensive Round Table discussion on the subject of the evolution of torts in European business law was held. The contributions to this volume reflect the results of the research undertaken by renowned European scholars and practitioners on central aspects such as competition law, company law and intellectual property. Each contribution particularly focuses upon the overarching tendencies and principles within the individual aspect of tort law, thereby directing attention to the future at European level of this essential area of private law. Readership: Lawyers, academics, legal departments, judges, legal professionals concerned with torts in European business law.

The Principles of European Contract Law, prepared by the so-called Lando Commission, today constitute the most advanced project on the harmonisation of European private law. As well as providing a set of rules which could facilitate cross-border trade within Europe, the Principles can be seen as a modern lex mercatoria which, for example, could be referred to by arbitrators deciding a case according to internationally accepted principles of law. Furthermore, the Principles provide a framework for EU legislation on contract law and, more importantly, they can be viewed as a first step towards a European Civil Code. They may also prove to be a catalyst for the development of national legislation, judicial decisions and legal doctrine. This new title, which follows the first volume covering Parts I and II of the Principles, includes chapters on plurality of parties, assignment of claims, transfer of contract, set-off, prescription, illegality and conditions. It provides a systematic overview of the Principles in comparison with Dutch law, which will be of interest not only in the Netherlands but also to lawyers in other countries who need to gain a clearer understanding of the Dutch contract law system.

Against the background of the creation of an EU-wide frame of reference for private law relevant to the Common Market, this study, which was requested by the EU Commission, analyses the dovetailing between contract and tort law on the one hand, and between contract and property law on the other. The study examines the legal orders of almost all the Member States of the EU, illustrates the differences between contractual and non-contractual liability and evaluates the different systems of the transfer of property, of movable and immovable securities as well as trust law. The study comes to the conclusion that the intensive considerations on the creation of a model-law in the area of European private law do not allow these thoughts to be limited to contract law. Such a limitation to the scope of the regarding of this area would probably cause more problems than it would solve, or at any rate not do justice to the needs of the Common Market.

Business law and labour law are driving forces and core areas of European private law. New concepts and approaches are thus required that are not limited to civil law and that are different from those traditionally embraced by national private law. These new challenges regarding the current status and perspectives of European private law are discussed in this volume by sixteen highly reputed researchers from across Europe. The contributions concern various areas of European private law, including contract, property, company, competition and labour law. This book will be an invaluable source for all those working on European law and private law within Europe.