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Introduction to special issue: Harmonisation of contract law: an economic and behavioural perspective

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Notes

  1. Von Bar and Clive (2009).

  2. A European contract law for consumers and businesses: Publication of the results of the feasibility study carried out by the Expert Group on European contract law for stakeholders’ and legal practitioners’ feedback (2011), following Commission Decision of 26 April 2010 setting up the Expert Group on a Common Frame of Reference in the area of European contract Law, 2010/233/EU and Green Paper from the Commission on policy options for progress towards a European Contract Law for consumers and businesses, COM (2010) 348 final. This culminated in the Proposal for a Common European Sales Law, COM (2011) 635 final.

  3. See about the state-of-the-art in European private law Basedow et al. (2009), Zimmermann (2009) and Twigg-Flesner (2010).

  4. See the contribution by Gomez and Ganuza to this issue.

  5. See however Low (2010).

  6. See however Vogenauer and Weatherill (2005); cf. Smits (2005b).

  7. Harmonisation and Diversity in European Contract Law: Perspectives from Law, Economics and Psychology, a Roundtable Conference held at Tilburg University on 5 March 2010. The conference was part of a broader research project funded by The Hague Institute on the Internationalisation of Law (HiiL).

  8. The following is based upon Smits (Smits 2005a).

  9. Lando (2000, p. 61).

  10. European Commission, Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on European Contract Law, COM (2001) 398 final, no. 30–32; cf. European Commission, Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council. A More Coherent Contract Law—An Action Plan, COM (2003) 68 final, no. 34; also see Staudenmayer (2002, p. 254).

  11. Cf. European Commission (2003) no. 28 ff.

  12. Cf. Reactions to the Communication on European Contract Law, European Commission (2003) 31: ‘Businesses are discouraged from cross-border transactions more by differences in the details of different consumer protection regimes than by diversity in the overall level of protection afforded.’

  13. Cf. Ott and Schäfer (2002, p. 209).

  14. Ott and Schäfer (2002, p. 213).

  15. Cf. Wagner (2002).

  16. Ott and Schäfer (2002, p. 207).

  17. Ribstein and Kobayashi (1996, p. 137 ff).

  18. Critical, however, Ribstein and Kobayashi (1996, p. 140).

  19. Cf. for this distinction Commission Staff Working Paper Extended Impact Assessment on the Directive concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market, COM (2003) 356 final, 6.

  20. Van den Berg (2001, pp. 324–325).

  21. See recently Faure and Smits (2011).

  22. Fernando Gomex and Juan Jose Ganuza, How to Build a European Private Law: an Economic Analysis of the Lawmaking and Harmonization Dimensions in European Private Law.

  23. Erin O’Hara O’Connor, The Limits of Contract Law Harmonization.

  24. Gary Low, Will Firms Consider a European Optional Instrument in Contract Law?

  25. Helmut Wagner, Is Harmonization of Legal Rules an Appropriate Target? Lessons from the Global Financial Crisis.

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Acknowledgment

The financial support by The Hague Institute on the Internationalisation of Law (HiiL) is acknowledged.

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  1. Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands

    Jan M. Smits

  2. University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    Jan M. Smits

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Smits, J.M. Introduction to special issue: Harmonisation of contract law: an economic and behavioural perspective. Eur J Law Econ 33, 473–480 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10657-011-9274-3

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