Smart contracts: A short journey into the future of consumer contracts

Abstract

The smart contract is a computer program that facilitates the automation of processes related to human bargaining. e topic is receiving some attention in doctrine perhaps by virtue of its curious name and perhaps because the concept is closely linked to the idea of the automation of law, a hotly debated topic. Having said that, it is not clear whether this innovation will be fully applied in the next few years in the field of consumer mass bargaining. On the one hand, the issue lends itself to an initial reflection on the evolution of the standardisation of consumer contracts in the global and digital economy. Our hypothesises is the smart contract constitutes a form of 'extreme standardisation' of consumer contracts, or rather, of their total or partial execution. is form is immediately very particular and critical for the interpreter, since it is intimately linked to the technological medium (i.e. Blockchain technology) and straddles the digital world and the real one. On the other hand, the paper considers whether the automation process, which is fully realised by the smart contract after the advent of electronic commerce and digital platforms, will be an opportunity to reduce the costs of justice in consumer disputes, or, on the contrary, will constitute a risk to consumer freedoms.