Melbourne Law School - Theses
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ItemAutomating the internet: the law of electronic commerce, contracts and autonomous software agents: regulation of Agent-mediated online contracting: enforceability, liability and risk allocation( 2002)This thesis enquires into the regulation of online contracts formed by autonomous, artificially intelligent software programs, called 'Agents'. It provides an overview of the current state of the law as applied to Agents that negotiate and transact online. Agent transactions are fundamentally different from other computerised transactions, as Agent actions are autonomous, proactive and informed by their ‘intelligence’ and ‘experience’. This paper focuses on three specific areas: (a) the extent to which Agent-generated contracts are, and should be, enforceable; (b) the liability of parties involved in Agent transactions; and (c) the manner in which risk is, and should be, allocated in respect of errors involved in the use of contracting Agents. In exploring these key areas, this thesis considers whether or not the current law adequately deals with Agent-mediated contracts. Areas in which the law fails to satisfactorily resolve issues of enforceability, liability and risk allocation are highlighted, and modifications and reform necessary to achieve such resolution are suggested. This thesis commences with a review of the technical aspects of Agent software, and identifies characteristics that differentiate Agents from other software. We then examine legal doctrine that may be invoked, in current or modified form, to govern Agent contracting activity. Principles of contract law, agency law, and legislative schemes are analysed to ascertain the extent to which they apply to Agent-mediated contracts. In evaluating the operation of contract law, principal-agent law and legislative initiatives, the benchmark against which proposed methods of regulating Agents are measured is the extent to which a particular approach facilitates electronic comerce by providing a strong legal infrastructure. In summary, this thesis: (a) defines and characterises software Agents and discusses e-commerce scenarios in which Agents are, and could be, utilised; (b) reviews principles of contract and agency law, as well as e-commerce legislation, analysing their application to online Agent contracting activity; (c) identifies areas where the law fails to adequately govern Agent-mediated contracts; and (d) suggests ways in which the law may more effectively regulate this new sphere of contracting activity.
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ItemThe continued application of source-based taxation in an electronic commerce environment( 2002)The advent of electronic commerce has caused many to question the continued viability of sourced-based taxation. Characteristics of electronic commerce include the expected reduction in the need for certain intermediaries in the business process, as well as the borderless and intangible nature of the Internet, which allows a business to earn income without it having to maintain a physical presence in the market territory. In light of these characteristics it is not difficult to see how arguments calling for the abandonment of source-based taxation continue to be raised. While the thesis accepts these observations as being valid, nevertheless it will be argued that source-based taxation is theoretically justifiable for income that arises from international transactions which are conducted in an electronic commerce environment. However, it will also be argued that the way in which the source of income is defined needs to be reconceptualised because the application of source-based taxation under traditional principles may be rendered problematic in light of certain characteristics of electronic commerce that are significant from a tax perspective. In summary, three main outcomes will emerge from this research, which flow from the arguments undertaken in the thesis: 1. Source-based taxation is theoretically justifiable for income that arises from international transactions which are conducted in an electronic commerce environment. The implication of this assertion is that source-based taxation of electronic commerce transactions should continue. 2. The way in which source is currently defined for electronic commerce transactions needs to be reconceptualised because of certain characteristics of electronic commerce that are significant from a tax perspective. 3. Various models for this reconceptualisation can be considered and three possible models will be examined and analysed for this purpose.
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ItemElectronic commerce on the Internet: legal issues of contracts on the World Wide Web( 1996)In the early nineties, despite the widespread knowledge of the potential uses of the Internet, many businesses and information technologists scoffed at using it as a medium for business. It was thought that the technology, capacity and critical mass would not make the Internet a suitable medium for electronic commerce. However, by the last quarter of 1994 there were over 10,000 companies offering information and services for sale over the Internet. This figure is now expected to grow to over one million businesses by the year 2000 despite the lack of clear laws governing commercial activity on the Internet. This paper is intended to investigate the issues of electronic commerce and the difficulties contracting parties face on the Internet which would not normally arise in conventional transactions. In addition, as one of the primary interest in the Internet comes from the easy and quick access to overseas markets, the paper will also consider the international aspects of Internet transactions. It is not the intention for the paper to be a comprehensive or definitive treatise on contract or international law, but rather consider the intriguing issues raised by electronic contracting in the domestic and international context. Chapter 1 is a concise introduction to the technology of the Internet and its workings to provide a background for the discussion that follows. Chapter 2 looks at the unresolved international issues that will arise out of trans-border Internet trade. Chapters 3 and 4 will then review the impact of Internet technology and how it challenged the current practices of proving the existence of contracts and the formation of contract. In chapter 5 we look at how the law deals with the specific issues of software being sold on-line and the attempts by Internet-stores to avoid statutory conditions designed to protect the consumer.