Electronic Contracts, Legal Research

In a sense, modern society is a contract society now that the contract system has become an important legal form promoting the development of international trade and economy. Therefore, it comes up electronic contract when E-Commerce development is reflected on contract system. As a new form of contracts, electronic contract brings increasingly outstanding legal problems as long as boosting international business. This article is made up of a preface and four main parts.Part one: The legal form of electronic contract. This part briefly introduces the basic classification and features of electronic contracts. By analyzing and comparing electronic contracts and traditional written contracts, this author shows that electronic contracts and traditional written contracts are unified in functions rather than form. Both which have the same legal power. Meanwhile, suggestions are given on the written form of electronic contracts.Part two: The general legal problems of signing electronic contracts. This part briefly introduces many problems including the arrive time of charge, establishment time and place, litigant ability of concluding contract, electronic agent and electronic mistake. The conclusion of an electronic contract consists of two steps namely charge and acceptance, the consistency of which leads to a valid electronic contract. Consequently, problems on the legal power of contracts arise such as the time and place of concluding the contract and litigant ability of concluding the contract. The automation and electrification of the means of e-contract result in the peculiar phenomenon of electronic agents and electronic mistakes. Analyzing electronic agent's nature leads to the electronic agent's meaning on the validity of the contract and to the responsibility belonging method. About the electronic mistake, mainly analyzing the impact of electronic mistake on validity of the contract and the responsibility to bear.Part three : The jurisdiction of electronic contract. Now the nature of non-territory and the unreality of circumstance are challenging the traditional legal jurisdiction. The legislation and justice authorities of the countries in the world are probing the methods of resolution. The main achievements of such probation include United States' Long-arm Jurisdiction which is based on website, jurisdiction system of our countries which is based on the site of computer server, the jurisdiction system based on consumers' original place in EU, and the jurisdiction system determined by agreement based on parties' opinions which is recognized by most countries. In research and analyzing various kinds of jurisdiction practice and systems, we can put our constructive thinking about the e-commerce jurisdiction system in our country.Part four: The legal application of electronic contract. In lawsuit practice, we are not desiring to wholly abandon the main principles of traditional Conflict Law, but the application of such principles shall be restricted. The doctrine of Most Significant Relationship is still can be used in the application of e-commerce law, but it ought to be standardization somehow. Meanwhile,the force law about protection of the consumer will be directly applied.