Internet Contract Making in Russia : What to Do If There is No Corresponding Legislation

This article if focused on the Russian e-commerce law. Despite the remarkable growth of the e-commerce market by volume, there is still no law on e-commece in Russia. A sketch overwiew to the three existing bills on e-commerce and European legal experience in this area is given in order to predict the possible development of legal framework for e-commece. The legal status of e-commerce is very questionable, primarily because of the lacking norms in the Russian Civil Code. Analyses of the contemporary legislation brings to the conclusion, that at first glance there is no possibility for legal conrtact-making on the Internet without using a digiltal signature. However thee are some theories which allow treating e-contacts legally, provided by author. The main part of the article explores the theoretical instruments constucting legal framework for e-commerce in contempoary Russia. Most of them, unluckinly, somehow conflict with the Russian law. Hence, the author proposes two ways to eliminate such a contradiction. The first one considers a number of actions which e-seller ia advised to follow in order to achieve the legal acknowledgement of e-contract. On the countrary, the second one is the doctrinal poposal to spread the rules of machine sale in connection with the norms on usual business practice on the e-contracting