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Diversity of Contract Law and the European Internal Market

Jan M. Smits
Tilburg University - Tilburg Institute of Comparative and Transnational Law (TICOM); University of Helsinki - Center of Excellence in Foundations of European Law and Polity

THE NEED FOR A EUROPEAN CONTRACT LAW: EMPIRICAL AND LEGAL PERSPECTIVES, Jan Smits, ed., pp. 153-186, Groningen, 2005
Maastricht Faculty of Law Working Paper No. 2005/9

Abstract:
This contribution discusses the question whether diversity of contract law among the European member states is a barrier to cross-border trade. This question is important in view of the ongoing debate about the need for a unified European private law. It has tried to answer the question by building upon insights from psychology, economics and law. It turns out that no definitive answer can be given to the question whether the savings in transaction costs through the removal of legal diversity are greater than the losses caused by the termination of competition of legal systems.

Keywords: European Private Law, Unification, Interdisciplinary approach

JEL Classifications: K12

Accepted Paper Series

Date posted: November 02, 2005 ; Last revised: August 23, 2008

Suggested Citation

Smits, Jan M., Diversity of Contract Law and the European Internal Market (October 2005). Maastricht Faculty of Law Working Paper No. 2005/9; Maastricht Faculty of Law Working Paper No. 2005/9. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=831944

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Contact Information

Jan M. Smits (Contact Author) Tilburg University - Tilburg Institute of Comparative and Transnational Law (TICOM) ( email ) P.O. Box 90153 NL-5000 LE Tilburg Netherlands HOME PAGE: http://www.jansmits.eu
University of Helsinki - Center of Excellence in Foundations of European Law and Polity ( email ) Porthania P.O. Box 4 Helsinki FIN-00014 Finland HOME PAGE: http://www.helsinki.fi/katti/foundations

Abstract

Date posted: November 02, 2005 ; Last revised: August 23, 2008

Suggested Citation

Contact Information

Jan M. Smits (Contact Author)