The Future of Contract Law   全文下載

契約法之未來

現代契約法的特點乃在於不同類型契約之間的多元化。英國政府現在高度管制租賃契約、僱傭契約、消費者契約。許多消費者保護制度源自於歐盟法規，但英國之消費者保護規範必須發展得更細緻化，這些發展被期望在英國脫歐後仍會繼續保存。我們可以期望英國通過進一步的立法來處理全新爭議，使規範更加多元化。以上發展，在其他國家亦有所適用。
一般討論契約法，通常限於企業間及個人間之契約。但是在許多關鍵爭議上，不同法系間存在顯著差異，尤其是在大陸法系與傳統英美法系之間，例如英國與威爾士、香港與新加坡。現今數位產品以及數位服務已經可以跨國提供，而小型企業和消費者間也訂立跨國契約，隨即衍生出我們是否可以期望採取進一步的措施來降低跨國訂約的成本之問題，例如採取更多的協調措施；通過擴大或修訂《維也納國際貨物銷售公約》；通過採用其他「替代手段」；通過鼓勵逐步統一的「軟性法律」等。
歐洲現在正彼此結合，但僅限「類型相似」的系統之間發生。在關鍵議題的處理上，英美法系與歐洲法律仍有不同。
由於典型的英美法系是處理由專業參與者（通常是參與變化迅速市場的投資者）訂立的高價值且複雜的契約，這些專業參與者被期待可以顧及自己的利益。然而其他國家的法律則更專注在低價值契約，此時適當的做法應是給予更多的保護。因此，我們將可預期有持續性之分歧。且考慮到法律現代化，各國應考慮該國最常處理的案件類型進而設計法律。

Modern contract law is marked by differentiation between types of contract. In the United Kingdom, housing contracts, employment contracts and particularly consumer contracts are now governed by specialist regimes. Many of the consumer measures derive from European Union legislation but UK consumer protection often goes further and the measures are expected to survive Brexit. We can expect more differentiation with further legislation to deal with new issues. The same is probably the case in almost all jurisdictions.
The general law of contract is thus effectively confined to contracts between businesses and between private individuals. But on many key issues the national laws of contract differ markedly, especially as between civil law countries and traditional common law jurisdictions such as England and Wales, Hong Kong and Singapore. Now that both digital products and services are being supplied on an international basis and now that small businesses and consumers make transnational contracts, the question arises whether we can expect further attempts to reduce the costs of transnational contracting, for example by more harmonisation measures; by the expansion or revision of the Vienna Convention on the International Sale of Goods or the adoption of other “optional instruments”; or by “soft law” principles encouraging a gradual convergence. In Europe convergence is happening, but only between “like-minded” systems; on the key issues the English common law remains quite different. This is because typically English law is dealing with high value contracts made by sophisticated players, often operating in volatile markets. These parties can be expected to look after their own interests. Other jurisdictions deal more with small businesses making low value contracts, when more protective rules are appropriate. Thus we can expect continued divergence. Jurisdictions thinking of modernising their law should consider what type of case their law will most often have to handle.