On The Historical Evolution Of The Theory Of Freedom Of Contract

The principle of contract freedom has always been an important theoretical and practical issue in the field of contract.The principle of contract freedom and its reasonable limits have also been hot topics discussed by the legal community.But why is the issue of contract freedom so compelling? In what areas should the discussion of contract freedom be focused? For various reasons,no one has conducted in-depth and full discussions on these issues so far.Whether the classical contract theory is destined to be abandoned in the dust of history,how should we evaluate the status of the classical contract in the development of the entire contract theory.Should the principle of freedom of contract,a principle enshrined in the classical contract,be broken,and where are its boundaries in practice?In the first part,we take the contract in practice of ancient Roman law as the starting point,introduce its tedious procedural characteristics,and explain that its procedural meaning is fundamentally the investigation of the parties' true heart.However,due to the limitation of objective material conditions,it is only through tedious procedures to reflect its true heart.Furthermore,we will lead to why the inquiries of the parties' heart and soul become the top priority in contract activities.We will combine the theories of the natural law school and the analytical law school to analyze the reason why the inner heart is important from the perspective of ancient Greek philosophy.This article intends to carry out a tracing back to the source of these problems,in order to be able to explore the reason why the principle of contract freedom is so important from a theoretical level,and clarify its development.This article is divided into four parts,taking the contract theory in ancient Roman law as the starting point,along with the development path of contract freedom theory since modern times,to explore the significance and key role of the principle of contract freedom in the entire contract field The function and feasibility of the strict systematic nature pursued by the classical contract and the development path of the systematic classical contract once it is broken.The third part is a review of the regression phenomenon of classical contract theory.Will focus on the content of Fried's contract is the principle of promise,to see the similarities and differences between this regression and the original classical contract theory.Does this return mean that the classical contract theory will really dominate the contract theory again.If not,why is this regression called a regression?The first part takes the contract of ancient Roman law in practice as the entry point,introduces its cumbersome procedural features,and shows that its procedural significance lies essentially in the exploration of the true meaning of the parties;due to the limitations of objective material conditions,only through the cumbersome Procedures reflect their inner intentions;the exploration of the parties 'inner intentions becomes the core reason for contract activities;and then combined with the natural law school and analytical law school theory,from the perspective of ancient Greek philosophy to analyze the reason why the inner heart is important.The second part analyzes the different paths of the Anglo-American legal system and the civil law system in the field of contract since modern times,and briefly sorts out the nuances and causes of contract freedom in the French Civil Code and the German Civil Code;Explain the development of the Anglo-American legal system's covenant theory and the principle of consideration,explain the characteristics of the covenant theory and why the covenant theory has dominated the Anglo-American legal system's contract theory for nearly a hundred years,and the various difficulties and different schools encountered throughout the development Confrontation and compromise in the face of difficulties.In addition,in the development of the contract theory of the Anglo-American legal system and the civil law system,the adherence to the principle of contract freedom or "mistakes".The third part is to sort out the regression phenomenon of classical contract theory,focusing on the content of Fried 's contract,namely the promise principle,analyzing the similarities and differences between this regression and the original classical contract theory,and exploring whether this regression means that the classical contract theory Will once again occupy the dominant position in contract theory,if not,why is it called regression? At the same time,Freed will rationally explain how his contract is the promise principle combined with the so-called "customs",and finally realize the development of contract theory.The fourth part discusses the important theories of contract field and relational contract theory at this stage,and analyzes why relational contracts can lead the development of contract law at this stage and its breakthrough on the principle of contract freedom is inevitable or accidental.Classical contract era.At the end,the author will try to observe the principle of contract freedom under the macro background of the entire economic and social development,and provide a basis for the reasonable limitation of the principle of contract freedom.