Making Laws for Cyberspace

Providing a scholarly analysis of how to govern and make the right kinds of laws for cyberspace, in this work, Professor Reed investigates the vast majority of cyberspace users who wish to act lawfully and asks whether the current state of law in cyberspace makes it possible for them to do so. If not, why not, and what is the cure? In this book, Professor Reed puts forward a new model for cyberspace laws which focuses on human actions rather than the technology used. Arguing that, in cyberspace, law works primarily through voluntary obedience rather than fear of enforcement, Professor Reed explains his thoughtful and controversial new viewpoint as to how cyberspace laws should be devised and re-opens the debate as to the value of law for regulating cyberspace and how best to influence the behaviour of cyberspace actors. The only text to comprehensively analyse European cyberspace lawmaking, this book provides a new perspective to the debate about the proper shape and scope of internet laws.

Part I - Cyberspace as a lawful space. Introduction. 1. Command and control. 2. The route to lawfulness. Part II - Authority in cyberspace. 3. Extraterritoriality. 4. Enforcement in cyberspace. 5. Sources of authority. 6. Authoritative lawmaking. Part III - Respectworthy laws. 7. Cyberspace communities and cyberspace norms. 8. Three ways to make meaningless law. 9. Aims and effectiveness. 10. Mismatch with cyber-reality.

Chris Reed is Professor of Electronic Commerce Law at Queen Mary, University of London. He teaches on a number of Queen Mary's LLM courses in the field, which include Computer Law, Electronic Commerce Law, and Cyberspace Law. From 1997-2000, Chris was Joint Chairman of the Society for Computers and Law, and in 1997-8 he acted as Specialist Adviser to the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology. Chris participated as an Expert at the European Commission/Danish Government Copenhagen Hearing on Digital Signatures, represented the UK Government at the Hague Conference on Private International Law, and has been an invited speaker at OECD and G8 international conferences.