Product Liability Law in Transition (Markets and the Law)

Contents......Page 6
Acknowledgements......Page 10
List of Abbreviations......Page 12
1 Introduction......Page 14
The Nature of Product Liability......Page 16
A Further Tier of Analysis - the 'European Product Liability Law'......Page 18
The Scope of Enquiry......Page 20
Possible Alternative Approaches......Page 21
Why Central Europe?......Page 23
A Note on the Sources of Central European Civil Law - The Forthcoming Changes in the Civil Codes......Page 24
Structure of the Book......Page 25
PART I Setting the Scene: Product Liability Law ‘In Transition’......Page 28
Introduction......Page 30
Introduction......Page 32
The Complex Nature of Central European Legal Systems......Page 33
External and Internal Distinctivemess of Central European Legal System......Page 34
Conclusions......Page 56
Scoping the Study......Page 58
Product Liability and the Law of Obligations- Contrasting the 'West' with Central Europe......Page 61
Product Liability and Consumer Protection - Developments in the West and in Central Europe; The Impact of the Product Liability Directive......Page 106
Conclusions to Part I......Page 168
PART II Product Liability Systems in Central Europe – Domestic Contract and Tort Law, Implementation of the Product Liability Directive......Page 170
Introduction......Page 172
Introduction......Page 174
The Historical Background and Features of Contractual Product Liability in Central Europe......Page 175
Freedom of Contract, its Limits and its Influence on Central European Product Liability Systems......Page 177
Contractual Liability in the Civil Codes......Page 179
Breach of Contract: 'Contractual Fault' and 'Defect'......Page 186
Damage......Page 191
Limitation Periods for Contractual Claims......Page 194
Utility of Contract Law Rules in the Product Liability Context - The Limits of Privity and Attempts to Vitiate Them......Page 195
Conclusions......Page 198
General Tendencies in the Development of Central European Tortious Product Liability Regimes......Page 200
General Tortious Liability Provisions in the Civil Codes......Page 204
The Jurisprudence of Central European Courts and the Doctinal Re-interpretation of Law - Evolution of Tortious Product Liability Regimes......Page 209
II. Specific Tortious Liability Provisions of the Civil Codes and Their Use in Product Liability Cases......Page 263
Implementation of the Directive - the Process......Page 268
Substantive Provisions of the Directive - Their  Implementation by the Central European Product Liability Acts......Page 271
7 Central European Product Liability Law in Transition – Conclusions and Prognosis......Page 290
Conclusions to Part II......Page 288
Academic Literature......Page 294
EU Policy Documents, Reports and Action Programmes (in chronological order)......Page 325
Other Policy Papers, Research Reports, Databases and Collections of Principles (in chronological order)......Page 329
Legislation, Including Drafts (in chronological order)......Page 330
Unpublished Documents and Individual Reports......Page 337
Case Law (in chronological order)......Page 338
Personal Interviews Conducted by the Author......Page 342
Index......Page 344