Dorota Leczykiewicz - Böcker

Comparative Reflections in Private Law celebrates the scholarly legacy of Professor Simon Whittaker, whose work has left a profound mark on the field of comparative law. Reflecting the breadth and depth of his influence, the volume brings together leading scholars to explore central themes in private law from a comparative perspective. The volume is split into three distinct parts. The first part of the volume focuses on contract law, examining topics ranging from defects in the formation of a contract, interpretation, illegality, the doctrine of change of circumstances, and remedies. These chapters reflect Whittaker's commitment to doctrinal precision, analytical depth, and the value of comparative law as a means of understanding other legal traditions and re-examining one's own with a fresh perspective. The second part turns to tort law, with contributions exploring topics such as the role of violation of a right, the concept of foreseeability, the justifications for the non-recoverability of pure economic loss, and the treatment of illegality in product liability. These essays engage critically with fundamental concepts while also offering comparative insights into the functions and structure of tort law, an approach that reflects Whittaker's distinctive ability to draw deep connections between legal systems, both in their doctrinal rules and in the principles and goals that underpin them. The final part of the volume turns to private law intersections, addressing challenges that cut across traditional boundaries, such as the doctrine of the subsidiarity of unjustified enrichment and the difficulty of devising harmonized contract law in the European Union from the plurality of laws and languages of the Member States. Taken together, the contributions included in this volume highlight the distinctive blend of intellectual rigour, curiosity, and openness to both tradition and innovation, which has so distinctively characterized Simon Whittaker's scholarship.

This book consists of contributions exploring from different perspectives the ‘images’ of the consumer in EU law. The images of the consumer form the foundation for various EU policies, more or less directly oriented towards the goal of consumer protection. The purpose of the volume is to establish what visions of the consumer there are in different contexts of EU law, whether they are consistent, and whether EU law’s engagement with consumer-related considerations is sincere or merely instrumental to the achievement of other goals. The chapters discuss how consumers should be protected in EU contract, competition, free movement and trade mark law. They reflect on the limits of the consumer empowerment rationale as the basis for EU consumer policy. The chapters look also at the variety of concerns consumers might have, including the cost of goods and services, access to credit, ethical questions of consumption, the challenges of excessive choice and the possibility to influence the content of regulatory measures, and explore the significance of these issues for the EU’s legislative and judicial process.

The involvement of the EU in regulating private conduct and relationships between individuals is increasing. As a result, EU law affects the scope of private autonomy in ever wider contexts, sparking tensions with fundamental concepts of national private law systems. This volume offers a descriptive and normative account of the involvement of EU law in private law relationships. The recurring theme in the collected papers is the scope of policy objectives which are apt to legitimise the European Union's as yet unsystematic tendency to serve as a source of restrictions of private autonomy. The nature and purpose of the involvement of European Union law in private law relationships is investigated by the authors from both the substantive and the constitutional perspective. The papers look at such sectors regulating private law relationships as consumer law, labour law, competition law, equal treatment law and the law of remedies. While focusing on private law relationships the authors investigate more general concepts of EU law, such as the Internal Market freedoms and general principles of law, and the different modes of ensuring the effective application of EU secondary law.