E–commerce law regulated the electronic trading, whether online or not, though generally it does cover online trading. The Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 govern the conduct of electronic commerce in the UK. They are a key part of our online law and impact many online activities.
That said; E–commerce law is about much more than the 2002 Regulations. The English law of contract governs online as well as offline contracting. The key tenets of contract law are to be found in the long history of judgements and decisions by the courts, supplemented by legislation such as the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 and the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999.
- E-commerce and the Law – An introductory guide to the subject from Business Link (opens a new window).
- The Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 – These are the UK implementing Regulations for the Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000 on certain legal aspects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the Internal Market (opens a new window).
- Guide to the E-commerce Regulations – This Dti guide is designed to help businesses deal with the impact of the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 (opens a PDF File).
- The Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000 – These are the UK implementing Regulations for Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 1997 on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts (opens a new window).
- The Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 (opens a new window).
- The Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002 (opens a new window).
- Out-law’s e-commerce pages – Focusing on online transactions (opens a new window).
Glossary: Advertising, Business to Business, Business to Consumer, Digital Marketing, E-commerce, Electronic Point of Sales, Internet Marketing, M-Commerce, Marketing, Website