Priority of Protective Laws of Romano-Germanic and Common Law Legal Systems to the Party Autonomy in Choosing the Applicable Law in Contracts

By analyzing issues in the private international law of contracts from a comparative perspective, the convergence of two legal systems, Romano-Germanic and Common Law, in adhering to party autonomy for determining the applicable law, will be clarified. Although, party autonomy has emerged as a dominant principle in private international law of both legal systems, neither grants unlimited party autonomy and a number of restrictions on the freedom of choice are in place. Both common and civil law restrict choice-of-law clauses when it comes to certain contracts. These restrictions usually refer to contracts in which one party is perceived to be in weaker position, most importantly consumer contracts, employment contracts, and insurance contracts. So, in these kinds of contracts the priority of protective laws over the freedom of choice is necessary to avoid inequality of transaction power of the parties.