4. Glossary

information asymmetry

A situation in which the various parties to a contract do not have the same level of information concerning its conclusion and performance.

autonomy of the will

A founding principle of contract law, based on the idea that human beings are free and can only bind themselves by their own will. This principle is part of the cultural bath in which French contract law is immersed, and is crystallized in :

• freedom of contract (art. 1102 of the French Civil Code): everyone is free to contract or not, within the limits of public order;

• the binding force of the contract (art.1103 of the Civil Code): the will of the parties, catalyzed by the law, becomes, through the contract, the law of the parties;

• ...