Autonomy, Pluralism, and Contract Theory

Abstract:     
Autonomy-based theories of contracts tend to ascribe a rather modest role to the law and to conceptualize contract law as a unified body of doctrine governed by one regulative principle. But if autonomy stands for the commitment that people should, to some degree, be the authors of their own lives, both of these typical features are wrong or at least exaggerated. An autonomy-based contract law should be attentive to the pluralist prescription of offering people a sufficiently diverse set of robust frameworks to organize their various endeavors and interpersonal relationships. And it should actively empower people’s attempts to form collaborative contractual arrangements ― both discrete and impersonal, as well as long-term and relational ― by providing the necessary background regime for such risky undertakings.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 20

Accepted Paper Series