Intelligent Electronic Inter-Systemic Contracting - Issues on Consent and Contract Formation

Electronic contracting as an object of legal studies is getting more and more complex. Computers are currently being used not only as a way of searching and processing information, but also as communication tools, as automatic operators and already as a way of developing and accessing new forms of intelligent behaviour through the use of intelligent devices. New ways of electronic contracting have appeared each one with different specifications and ways of operating. The Brazilian legal doctrine has established a way of classifying electronic contracts according to the specific technical way of accomplishing each type of electronic communicating and contracting. For each category, there must be a different analysis relating to the main issue of the formation of contracts – mainly concerning the declaration of will, the expression of intent, the question of knowing whether a contract should be considered to be formed or completed. This issue is particularly problematic as far as Intelligent Electronic Inter-systemic contracting is concerned. The notions of digital signature and Interchange-Agreements may not be sufficient to grant validity to contracts formed not just through the machines, but indeed by the machines. So, it must be analyzed at least two main possibilities of considering the issue of the expression of consent in inter-systemic intelligent transactions: the possibility of considering the electronic devices as mere machines or tools, or the most daring possibility of considering the electronic devices as “legal persons”.