TY - JOUR T1 - Smart Contract Relations in e-Commerce: Legal Implications of Exchanges Conducted on the Blockchain JF - Technology Innovation Management Review Y1 - 2017 A1 - Philippa Ryan KW - blockchain KW - law KW - legal KW - online transactions KW - reputation KW - smart contracts KW - trust AB - Much of the discussion around blockchain-based smart contracts has focused on whether or not they operate in the same way as legal contracts. However, it is argued that most contracts are social rather than legal in nature and are entered into because the parties trust each other to perform the agreed exchange. Little has been written to address how the blockchain’s trust protocol can enable the kind of social contracting that characterized the way exchanges were conducted before the Internet. This article aims to fill that gap by exploring blockchain-based smart contracts primarily as non-contractual social exchanges. PB - Talent First Network CY - Ottawa VL - 7 UR - http://timreview.ca/article/1110 IS - 10 U1 - University of Technology Sydney Philippa (Pip) Ryan is a Barrister and Lecturer in the Faculty of Law at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), Australia. Her PhD reclassified the liability of third parties to a breach of trust. Her current research explores contracts and trustless relationships enabled by blockchain technology. Pip designed and coordinates legal technology subjects and in conjunction with the UTS Connected Intelligence Centre, she is developing writing analysis software to improve students’ self-assessments. She is on the industry advisory board of the Australian Digital Commerce Association, she is the Deputy Chair of the Australian Computer Society’s Blockchain Technical Committee, and she is a member of the Standards Australia Blockchain Technical Committee. ER -