ABSTRACT
This paper explores the role of autonomy as a value or principle underlying contract law and as a regulatory goal pursued by lawmakers and courts within contract law. It emphasizes the critical role autonomy plays in enabling individuals to shape their economic interactions and life choices through contractual agreements. The paper contrasts the traditional ‘principle approach’, rooted in 19th century liberalism, which treats autonomy as a starting point and prioritizes freedom from state interference and individual responsibility, with the ‘substantive equality approach’, which treats autonomy as an aspirational final point and recognizes the need for regulatory intervention to ensure true autonomy by addressing power imbalances and vulnerabilities. The discussion in this paper highlights how market failures, such as monopolies and information asymmetry, can threaten autonomy and necessitate protections through competition law and contract regulation. The paper also explores debates around paternalism, particularly the balance between weak and strong forms of state intervention, and the implications of the choice theory of contracts. This theory advocates diversifying contract options to enhance autonomy, but it also raises challenges regarding market dynamics and the cognitive burden on individuals. Overall, the paper emphasizes the complexity of safeguarding autonomy within evolving legal and economic frameworks.
Van Boom, Willem H, Autonomy in Contract Law (August 21, 2025).
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