Legal Pluralism in European Contract Law

The relevance of contracting and self-regulation in consumer markets has increased rapidly in recent years, in particular in the platform economy. Online platforms provide opportunities for businesses and consumers to connect with strangers, often across borders, trading products, and services. In this new economy, platform operators create, apply and enforce their own rules in their contractual relationships with users. This book examines the substance of these rules and the space for private governance beyond the reach of state regulation.

Vanessa Mak explores recent developments in lawmaking 'beyond the state' with case studies focusing on companies such as Airbnb and Amazon. The book asks how common values and objectives of EU law, such as consumer protection and contractual fairness, can be safeguarded when lawmaking shifts to a space outside the reach of state law.

1:Introduction
2:New Legal Pluralism and Transnational Private Law
3:A Theory of Substantive Deliberation
4:Objectives and Values: Economic and Social Rights in European Private Law
5:Pluralism in European Private Law
6:The Platform Economy: Regulatory Instruments
7:The Normative Side: Transparency in the Platform Economy
8:More Normativity: Standardisation
9:Managing Pluralism
10:Conclusion