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Contracts

2015

Selected Works

Wayne R. Barnes

Articles 1 - 9 of 9

Full-Text Articles in Law

The French Subjective Theory Of Contract: Separating Rhetoric From Reality, Wayne Barnes Jul 2015

The French Subjective Theory Of Contract: Separating Rhetoric From Reality, Wayne Barnes

Wayne R. Barnes

Most of the world, including Anglo-American jurisdictions, conforms to the objective theory of contract, which posits that contract formation is determined by reference solely to external evidence of manifestations of assent. On the other hand, France uniquely clings to the rhetoric of its “subjective” theory of contract, championing the freedom of the individual and the autonomy of the will. France’s association with a subjective theory of contract is widely recognized and assumed. One would initially assume that the French subjectivist philosophy would result in dramatically different outcomes in actual cases, when compared with the objectivist rules-based perspective that obtains in …


The Objective Theory Of Contracts, Wayne Barnes Jul 2015

The Objective Theory Of Contracts, Wayne Barnes

Wayne R. Barnes

The objective theory of contracts is the dominant approach for determining whether there has been mutual assent to the formation of a contract. Under objective theory, a party’s manifestation of assent will be held to mean what a reasonable person in the position of the other party would conclude that the manifestation meant. The objective theory is a sound approach for determining assent because: it reflects the pragmatic reality that the law must be largely based on externals rather than the whim of subjective perception, it protects the basis for economic exchanges in our commercial system by enforcing the expectations …


Rethinking Spyware: Questioning The Propriety Of Contractual Consent To Online Surveillance, Wayne R. Barnes Jul 2015

Rethinking Spyware: Questioning The Propriety Of Contractual Consent To Online Surveillance, Wayne R. Barnes

Wayne R. Barnes

The spyware epidemic has reached new heights on the Internet. Computer users are increasingly burdened with programs they did not knowingly or consciously install, which place strains on their computers' performance, and which also trigger annoying "pop-up" advertisements of products or services which have been determined to match the users' preferences. The users' purported preferences are determined, in turn, by the software continuously monitoring every move the consumer makes as she "surfs the Internet." The public overwhelmingly disapproves of spyware which is surreptitiously placed on computers in this manner, and also largely disapproves of the pop-up advertising paradigm. As a …


Consumer Assent To Standard Form Contracts And The Voting Analogy, Wayne Barnes Jul 2015

Consumer Assent To Standard Form Contracts And The Voting Analogy, Wayne Barnes

Wayne R. Barnes

Standard form contract are ubiquitous, whether signed in the real world or clicked in the online world. Consumers are constantly entering into standard form contracts with the merchants they transact with in order to buy goods or services. Consumers, however, are usually aware of only the basic terms in the form like price, subject matter, and quantity. Consumers otherwise rarely read the form contracts that they sign. However, traditional contract law and the duty to read provide that the consumer is bound to all the terms contained in the form contract, both the known terms and the unread and unknown …


Theory And Anti-Theory In The Work Of Allan Farnsworth, Wayne R. Barnes Jul 2015

Theory And Anti-Theory In The Work Of Allan Farnsworth, Wayne R. Barnes

Wayne R. Barnes

When Allan Farnsworth passed away on January 31, 2005, the world lost a titan in the field of contracts. Farnsowrth has been described as “the great contemporary American scholar, and one of a handful of great world scholars, on the law of agreement...[He] was...perhaps The Authority on the law of contracts and much more.” Similarly, others have called him “the premiere figure in American Contracts law scholarship since the passing of Corbin and Dawson. The treatise and his half of the Second Restatement would be quite a contribution if there was nothing else.” Farnsworth’s casebook is perennially the most widely-adopted …


Toward A Fairer Model Of Consumer Assent To Standard Form Contracts: In Defense Of Restatement Subsection 211(3), Wayne R. Barnes Jul 2015

Toward A Fairer Model Of Consumer Assent To Standard Form Contracts: In Defense Of Restatement Subsection 211(3), Wayne R. Barnes

Wayne R. Barnes

Standard-form contracts permeate our very existence, and now even include contracts we assent to online by way of “clickwrap” and “browsewrap” methods. Notwithstanding the ever-increasing presence and complexity of such standard-form contracts, both offline and online, the law of contracts in this area has remained fairly static since the 18th century and before. The only meaningful salve to this problem thus far has been the unconscionability doctrine, but that doctrine tends to be reserved for the harshest and severest terms. Therefore, a new tool is needed for courts to protect consumers’ interests in this area. Section 211(3) of the Restatement …


Rethinking Spyware: Questioning The Propriety Of Contractual Consent To Online Surveillance, Wayne R. Barnes Jul 2015

Rethinking Spyware: Questioning The Propriety Of Contractual Consent To Online Surveillance, Wayne R. Barnes

Wayne R. Barnes

The spyware epidemic has reached new heights on the Internet. Computer users are increasingly burdened with programs they did not knowingly or consciously install, which place strains on their computers' performance, and which also trigger annoying "pop-up" advertisements of products or services which have been determined to match the users' preferences. The users' purported preferences are determined, in turn, by the software continuously monitoring every move the consumer makes as she "surfs the Internet." The public overwhelmingly disapproves of spyware which is surreptitiously placed on computers in this manner, and also largely disapproves of the pop-up advertising paradigm. As a …


Theory And Anti-Theory In The Work Of Allan Farnsworth, Wayne R. Barnes Jul 2015

Theory And Anti-Theory In The Work Of Allan Farnsworth, Wayne R. Barnes

Wayne R. Barnes

When Allan Farnsworth passed away on January 31, 2005, the world lost a titan in the field of contracts. Farnsowrth has been described as “the great contemporary American scholar, and one of a handful of great world scholars, on the law of agreement...[He] was...perhaps The Authority on the law of contracts and much more.” Similarly, others have called him “the premiere figure in American Contracts law scholarship since the passing of Corbin and Dawson. The treatise and his half of the Second Restatement would be quite a contribution if there was nothing else.” Farnsworth’s casebook is perennially the most widely-adopted …


Moderator: Performance & Enforcement Panel Discussion, Wayne Barnes Feb 2015

Moderator: Performance & Enforcement Panel Discussion, Wayne Barnes

Wayne R. Barnes

No abstract provided.