Digital art is the result of creative activity practiced in the virtual space. There is no unified concept of digital art in Russia, and there is no legislative consolidation of this term. In this regard, attempts to find an answer to what digital art is and what rights its acquirer has are topical issues of Russian legal science. At the same time, under the influence of technology, as a result of the development of the blockchain, new ways of handling digital art objects have appeared. The appearance of non-fungible tokens (NFT) causes a lot of legal problems. The study of these problems is the most important task for modern lawyers. The purpose of the study is to identify the legal qualification of digital art objects. In this regard, the author sets the task to study the structure of NFT as an object of civil law. The purpose of the article is also to identify potential risks for intellectual property rights holders when issuing NFT. The methodology of this research is based on the use of a set of general scientific methods and specific methods of analysis used in legal science: system-structural method, system-functional, induction and deduction, analogy, method of formal logic and system approach. In particular, the dialectical method provides an opportunity to systematically explore the unity of social content and legal form of art objects in the digital space. The formal legal method makes it possible to form legal categories by highlighting the main features of phenomena related to research questions. The author has made assumptions about the legal nature of digital art and NFT, as well as their place in the system of intellectual property law. The author has come to the conclusion that crypto art is one of the types of digital art. A specific feature of cryptographic art objects is that their emergence and existence is possible only in blockchain. As a result of the conducted research, it has been revealed that not all NFTs connected to art objects are crypto-art objects in digital commerce.
The development of modern technologies has led to the creation of a new way to conclude agreements through automated systems — smart contracts, the emergence of which was largely due to the development of distributed ledger technology (Blockchain). The advantage of the system of “smart contracts” is the ability to make transactions directly with counterparties, without resorting to the services of banks, payment system operators and other transaction operators, which, in turn, reduces costs. Smart contracts can also be used during remote electronic voting, allowing you to solve problems related to security, reliability of data and their protection. Many states have managed to assess the advantages of this technology, having decided to implement it in the digital economy. But before implementing the achievements of scientific and technological progress, it is necessary to understand their technical and legal nature in order to form proper legislation regulating their application. Within the framework of this work, the technical and legal features of smart contract technology are considered in comparison with the traditional form of concluding contracts, and it is also proposed to use it in economic turnover within a special platform.
As the golden rule of resolving the conflict between intellectual property and right in rem of the same object, exhaustion of rights aims to avoid the influence of exercising intellectual property right on right in rem. The academic circle is unable to come to any agreement concerning the discussion of extending the rule of exhaustion of rights to the regulation of utilizing works in digital conditions. The blockchain technology and market have a transformative impact on the copyrights in the digital environment. NFT and the mode of NET of digital works have reshaped the traditional ecology of online works transmission and utilization, offering opportunities for the exhaustion of rights to be applied in the network environment. Hence, it is the right moment to create the digital environment to apply the exhaustion of copyrights.
The problem of legal regulation of cross-border private law relations in the field of intellectual property implemented through blockchain technologies requires thorough scrutiny on behalf of both legal theorists and practitioners. The use of blockchain technologies is relevant for both copyright and industrial property issues. A practical method to establish a technological basis for the protection of intellectual property rights that is used for their storing and for other purposes provides for implementation of so-called blockchain ledgers. At the same time, the main function of blockchain ledgers is to protect the rights of copyright holders and to provide them with an opportunity to use results of their intellectual activity simultaneously in several jurisdictions. In this respect, the use of distributed ledger technologies should be regulated by a system of rules established by the participants of legal relations within the framework of implementation of certain cross-border private law relations. This article considers, inter alia , lex registrum as a system of rules regulating relations under consideration.
Smart contracts continue to formulate the backbone of blockchain transactions. After the foundation of the Ethereum protocol, the Initial Coin Offerings, Security Token Offerings, and Non-Fungible Tokens have all relied on smart contracts, with enormous market volume. The broad scope of smart contracts’ (potential) application is undisputed, yet many countries have been silent on the regulation of smart contracts. These same countries, however, have already set some standards regarding crypto assets and crypto asset service providers. We can include Switzerland and the European Union, that has already prepared a draft Regulation for Markets in Crypto Assets, in this first group. Some jurisdictions, such as the UK and the US, have already concluded that common law principles suffice to tackle with smart contracts. The third group, including Italy, has defined smart contracts but has no comprehensive regulatory framework. There is a final group of countries that have chosen not to regulate any aspects of the distributed ledger technology (yet). It is without a doubt that the use of smart contracts will cause problems regarding formation, contract performance, applicable law, jurisdiction, protection of consumers, and personal data.
Los NFT están superando a la cadena de bloques y a las criptomonedas en popularidad. Se trata de certificados de propiedad almacenados en una cadena de bloques y respaldados por la tecnología blockchain (p. ej., Ethereum) que suelen estar asociados a un activo digital, como las artes visuales, los vídeos, la música o los objetos de colección. Los NFT parecen estar llamados a jugar un papel clave en el denominado metaverso, un entorno digital que opera en la cadena de bloques, donde tecnologías como la realidad virtual y la realidad aumentada actúan como proveedores de componentes visuales, y que ofrece oportunidades de negocio e interacción social ilimitadas. El arte es solo una parte del mundo virtual basado en blockchain donde los avatares, la tierra, los edificios, los nombres, etc., se pueden vender y comprar como NFT. Este fenómeno crea obviamente una serie de implicaciones legales novedosas. La creación, la distribución, la propiedad y el comercio de los NFT son fenómenos nuevos que plantean multitud de cuestiones jurídicas, muchas de las cuales son ambiguas o no están resueltas. En este contexto, el presente trabajo analiza la competencia judicial internacional en controversias relativas a tokens no fungibles, con especial atención al Derecho europeo, haciendo asimismo referencia a la jurisprudencia reciente de terceros Estados en materia de criptoactivos.
Michele Soavi, Nicola Zeni, John Mylopoulos, Luisa Mich
Abstract The opportunity to automate and monitor the execution of legal contracts is gaining increasing interest in Business and Academia, thanks to the advent of smart contracts, blockchain technologies, and the Internet of Things. A critical issue in developing smart contract systems is the formalization of legal contracts, which are traditionally expressed in natural language with all the pitfalls that this entails. This paper presents a systematic literature review of papers for the main steps related to the transformation of a legal contract expressed in natural language into a formal specification. Key research studies have been identified, classified, and analyzed according to a four-step transformation process: (a) structural and semantic annotation to identify legal concepts in text, (b) identification of relationships among concepts, (c) contract domain modeling, and (d) generation of a formal specification. Each one of these steps poses serious research challenges that have been the subject of research for decades. The systematic review offers an overview of the most relevant research efforts undertaken to address each step and identifies promising approaches, best practices, and existing gaps in the literature.
The article represents the current state of the use of non-fungible tokens as blockchain-enabled cryptographic assets that represent proof of ownership of digital objects. Their great potential is substantiated as a means of protecting various types of information, capable of ensuring its confidentiality, integrity and availability. The problems of ensuring the security of non-fungible tokens are highlighted and ways to solve them are proposed.
Although the term “digital rights” and their kinds are now stipulated in the Civil Code of the Russian Federation and other federal laws, the concept of a smart contract and its legal issues arising with its use are not reflected in the current legislation. In our view, it is a drawback since digital rights are transferred from the one to another person in an information system with the use of a smart contract. Smart contract is deemed to be a contract which is concluded and performed in a special information system being decentralized and distributed (like blockchain) and enabling making transactions of digital rights. The peculiarities of a smart contract enhance stability of civil turnover and promote due performance of obligations. It is argued to be possible to transit digital rights in virtue of law on such lawful grounds as a court decision, hereditary succession in case of presenting a certificate of inheritance, where an operator of an information system makes an appropriate record in accordance with the rules of such information system. The lack of legal regulation of a smart contract restrains the broader use of digital rights as well as implementation of accrual of digital rights on the basis of decisions of law enforcement bodies.
The crypto industry has exploded in recent years, and authorities in different countries have been reacting in very different ways. Some have banned cryptocurrencies, while others are embracing them to varying degrees. Some are working hard to align their anti-money laundering regulations with FATF standards, while others are turning a blind eye. A few countries have confiscated huge quantities of crypto assets linked to crime and money laundering. Others are at square one in terms of enforcement, risking becoming a hub for crypto crime and money laundering and posing a serious vulnerability in the world’s financial system.
 This Working Paper draws on a detailed analysis of how selected countries are addressing legal, regulatory and enforcement issues around cryptocurrencies and other virtual assets. The analysis is focused on Asia, but set in the context of global trends in crypto law, regulation and enforcement. It explores critical questions that will shape policies around virtual assets at the corporate, national and international levels:
 
 What is working in terms of crypto regulation and enforcement?
 What are the implications of different policy choices on crypto assets – for the industry, for the countries themselves and for global financial integrity as a whole?
 What would the crypto wave possibly bring next?
 
 The Paper also highlights broader developments needed to bring light and clarity to laws, policies and practices around the crypto industry, such as collaboration between both market players and governments.
 Jurisdictions touched upon in this Working Paper alphabetically include Bhutan, Central African Republic, El Salvador, Hong Kong SAR, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, the Philippines, the People’s Republic of China, Thailand, Ukraine and Vietnam.
 A list of key terms and abbreviations have been prepared in the Annex to this Working Paper for the readers’ easy reference.
 About this Working Paper
 This Working Paper is a collaboration between Dorothy Siron, Co-Managing Partner, Zhong Lun Law Firm LLP and Federico Paesano, Senior Financial Investigation Specialist, Basel Institute on Governance.
 Dorothy Siron provided the bulk of the analysis and discussion, while Federico Paesano provided a selection of case studies and was co-author of the seven recommendations contained in section 4. The collaboration was facilitated by the International Academy of Financial Crime Litigators, an independent, non-partisan global centre that shapes and advances financial crime litigation practices for the future.
SpCon: Finding Smart Contract Permission Bugs with Role Mining This page can be best viewed at: https://github.com/Franklinliu/SpCon-Artifact. This artifact has been archived at the following permanent location: [](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6534218) We wish to apply for the availability, functionality, and reusability badges. Contents This readme first demonstrates how to quickly use <em>SpCon</em> to detect smart contract permission bugs with an example. Then, we provide details on the result reproduction procedures for the two experiments from the paper. Finally, we give an example to show how to reuse <em>SpCon</em> and its API documentation for potential reusability and integration in the future.
This paper presents a review of the current status and development trends of the non-fungible tokens’ technology (NFT), which are digital rights to unique objects recorded in the blockchain. The object of the study is the non-interchangeable token technology. The subject of the study is the fields of practical application of NFT. The method is an analytical review of scientific publications. The current state and socio-cultural sources of the NFT market related to works of art and media objects are analysed. The technological and legal problems preventing the wide spread of NFT in the business environment are identified. The prospects for the use of non-fungible tokens in the field of protection and commercialization of patent law objects are considered.
This chapter investigates how those in working in law and technology can and should work together to develop superior legal technologies, particularly in the context of legally binding smart contracts. It looks at contemporary models of interdisciplinary collaboration—including global consortia and strategic partnerships between law firms and technology companies—and considers how existing strategies to build legal technology could be applied to the challenge of developing distributed ledger solutions such as smart legal contracts. Working in tandem, lawyers and developers can build, deploy and scale smart legal contracts more efficiently; leveraging their expertise to break new ground, without diluting their core competencies. This approach will enhance the way lawyers work and democratize access to their services, while improving return on technology investment. By contrast, working in silos, these stakeholders risk misunderstanding part of the problem they are trying to solve. This chapter concludes by considering how lawyers can further stimulate the uptake of smart legal contracts by applying their skill-set to the development and adoption of international standards that are crucial for the sustainable growth and quality management of emerging legal technologies.
Language has always been a critical and fundamental aspect in traditional contract crafting. However, with the advent of smart contracts, where contracts are coded in a programming language and for automated execution, the growth and use of smart contracts may lead towards the homogenization of languages: not just in the form of natural language as programming languages are in the English language, but also in the standardization of the programming language used for smart contracts. This chapter thus aims to discuss how the drafting and use of smart contracts may eventually lead to the homogenization of natural languages and the choice of programming language in contract drafting. It will also raise the issues of such homogenization, such as the potential erosion of non-English or less often used languages, the loss of the monopoly for lawyers as their language expertise becomes less important and how the homogenization of languages can affect technological developments in the use of artificial intelligence in contract drafting.
The novel characteristics of distributed ledger technology (‘DLT’) and ‘smart legal contracts’ (‘SLCs’) make it essential for parties to think carefully about how disputes arising in this context will be resolved. Put simply, codification and self-execution of parties’ agreements will not do away with disputes, and conflict of law questions can be very complicated in the absence of express dispute resolution mechanics within the SLC itself or the governance framework of the relevant DLT ecosystem. Many users of DLT are keen to resolve disputes ‘on chain’, avoiding recourse to traditional courts or tribunals. This trend is diving a new wave of Online Dispute Resolution (‘ODR’) tools. However, notwithstanding the potential benefits of efficiently enforcing ODR decisions ‘on-chain’ as a matter of practice, it is crucial to consider how those decisions can be anchored (and enforced or protected) within a valid domestic or international legal framework. It is no good to have a self-executing ODR process ‘on-chain’ which can be wholly unwound if a dissatisfied party takes the matter to a domestic court. This chapter summarizes the basic concepts related to ODR, DLT, smart contracts, and SLCs, reviews the possibility of resolving DLT disputes through new and established ODR processes, and explores the promise and challenges of DLT-based ODR solutions currently available. It comments on the need for greater multi-disciplinary collaboration at the interface of law and technology to build legally robust ODR processes that are fit for the digital economy and will enable and promote more mainstream adoption of DLT.
Dijital tarihin akışına yön veren blok zinciri teknolojisi sanat tasarım ve ekonomi gibi birçok alanda yankı uyandırmıştır. Kripto ekonomi ağında geliştirilen NFT (Non-Fungible Tokens) varlık birimi ile tasarımcılar ve sanatçılar etki alanlarını genişletmişlerdir. Dijital eserlerin değer kazanması ve sahiplik haklarının lisanslanabilmesi, bilgi çağında sanat ve tasarımın dijital baskınlığının bir göstergesi olmuştur. Bu gelişmeler dijital sanata dair yeni tartışmaları gündeme getirmiştir. Eserin dijital varlığı ile fiziksel varlığı arasındaki kıyas bazı sanat eserlerinin sadece dijitalde var olabilmeleri adına fiziksel varlıklarının yakılarak yok edilmesi gibi durumlarla sonuçlanmıştır.Teknolojinin doğru amaçlarla kullanılabilmesi için öncelikle altyapısının doğru anlaşılması gerektiği göz önünde bulundurularak, NFT teknolojisinin anlaşılabilmesi adına araştırmada blok zinciri teknolojisine ayrıntılı bir şekilde yer verilmiştir. Teknolojideki bu kritik gelişmelerin altyapısının anlaşılması kripto sanat alanında atılacak adımların daha nitelikli olması ve yeni kripto koşullara uyum sağlanabilmesi açısından önemlidir. Araştırma, dijital çağın sunduğu olanakların doğru kullanımı ve bu doğrultuda yaşanan gelişmelerin odağında biçimlendirilmiştir. Bu kapsamda kripto sanat eserlerinin anlamsal değeri Beeple’ın Everydays: The First 5000 days isimli eseri üzerinden sanat eleştirmenleri ve sanatçıların yorumları ışığında değerlendirilmiştir. Araştırmada, lisanslanarak eşsiz birer dijital varlığa dönüştürülen sanat eserleri fiziksel varlıkları üzerinden irdelenmiş, varlıkların dijital ve fiziksel varoluşları adına ortaya koyulan eserler ve projeler değerlendirilmiş, sonuç kısmında doküman ve metin analizi yapılmıştır. Bu şekilde bir dijital varlığın kendini gerçeklemesi için fiziksel varlığından kurtulunması düşüncesi ve vandallık arasındaki fark ortaya koyulmuştur.
Subject. This article discusses the issues of using the capabilities of non-fungible tokens (NFT) to tokenize copyright objects, and regulation of authorship and ownership of NFT objects on existing Internet platforms. Objectives. The article aims to describe the main opportunities and complexities of tokenization of assets using non-fungible tokens in Russia and abroad, and substantiate the need for legal changes in NFT regulation. Methods. For the study, I used the methods of comparison, observation, classification, and analysis of statistical data from leading analytical platforms and blockchain explorers, and Russian and foreign research materials. Results. Based on the assessment of the legal status of non-fungible tokens in Russia and abroad, the article presents legal initiatives to regulate non-fungible tokens both in Russia and abroad. Relevance. The presented NFT tools can be useful for analysts, researchers, specialists in blockchain technology, journalism, film industry, business, mass events, as well as developers, artists, musicians, art historians and ordinary users in establishing the authenticity of art objects and collectibles, implementing applications, patents, certificates and licenses for the product, tokenizing digital goods to prevent fraud and plagiarism, and monitor the execution of financial transactions.
The article examines the institutions of civil procedural law, in which, according to the author, it is possible and necessary to use distributed ledger technology (blockchain technology). The author argues that the technology is applicable not only for private legal purposes, but can signifi -cantly change a number of familiar rules of legal proceedings. In particular, the technology of distributed registers can change the procedural guarantees of the independence of state judges, more often involve active citizens in the administration of justice, change the system for reviewing court decisions, contribute to the unification of judicial practice, and reduce the judicial burden on judges. The author also sees the possible benefits of the technology for cases, the making of decisions on which in the future can be implemented using artificial intelligence and machine data analysis. Thus, subject to the correct use of blockchain technology, the state will be able to ensure the modification of those guarantees of justice that are currently considered poorly implemented or unreliable, including due to the development of digital technologies.
We consider designing a two-layer model of a private distributed ledger to organize electronic document flow in criminal proceedings. We create a model that considers specifics of the criminal process, interaction of the parties during the case, and the main risks. It is proposed to use blockchain technology as a basis for the first layer of the model, limiting the decentralization degree to the participation of a certification authority. The second layer of the model is proposed to be implemented based on a "key list" that ensures the confidentiality of information. The developed model can neutralize the risks of forgery, falsification, and destruction of criminal case materials, which contributes to strengthening the status of the court as an institution.
Blockchain is the technology behind infamous Bitcoin and provides a structure for dispute resolution with the help of smart contracts. The technology aims to establish an anonymous and decentralized mechanism without any state oversight or intermediary for transactions. Blockchain works on a decentralized network creating an immutable record of transactions. A smart contract is a self-executing software program that automatically performs a function. Once the conditions are met, the contract enforces itself without any additional step. The blockchain dispute resolution (BDR) platforms offer services for disputes arising out of blockchain and smart contract transactions or for traditional disputes that are not related to blockchain transactions. Each of the platforms provides untraditional mechanisms for adjudication that are also different from each other, creating an unorganized and unregulated environment. The platforms do not comply with the accustomed principles of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and online dispute resolution (ODR) mechanisms raising the question of validity and legitimacy of the platforms and the need for regulation. The article aims to act as a brief introduction to some of these platforms and identifies major issues with BDR when compared to the established dispute resolution procedures. It briefly explains the blockchain and smart contracts with some examples on their alternative applications and then introduces BDR platforms. The article discusses concerns about BDR in light of ADR and ODR principles. It points out main issues following up the comparison of different mechanisms and tries to provide a perspective to find answers with discussion of possible solutions. Finally, the article suggests that the best way forward is to utilize BDR for supplementing ODR and ADR. If regulation is found absolutely necessary, then soft law instruments should be the first step in this respect.
The present work is a review of the book “Internet of Things and the Law” by Dr. Guido Noto La Diega. Unlike other analyses that tend to focus on individual issues and are US-centric, this study is an updated comprehensive reflection on the problem from a European socio-legal perspective. Having identified IoT-generated risks, the author critically assesses how these risks can be tackled by EU contract law, consumer protection law, data protection law and intellectual property law.
AbstractThis article researches the content of the draft Civil Code ofthe Republic of Uzbekistan and the issue of smart contracts. The study also analyzes the issue of defining smart contracts as a written form of agreement and contract. The disadvantages of concluding a will agreement through smartcontracts are justified. The article explores the basics of using smart contracts as a way to fulfill an obligation.