Research Handbook on the Metaverse and Law

Edited by Larry A. DiMatteo, Huber Hurst Professor of Contract Law and Legal Studies, Warrington College of Business & Levin College of Law, University of Florida, US and Michel Cannarsa, Professor of Private Law and Dean, Lyon Catholic University, France

• ContentsPreface xv1 Into the metaverse 1Larry A. DiMatteo and Michel CannarsaPART I BEYOND THE UNIVERSE2 Technology and philosophy of the metaverse: prospective views 9Sylvie Allouche and Mathieu Guillermin3 Metaverse as a network of contracts 26T.F.E. Tjong Tjin Tai and Danielle Op Heij4 Role of NFTs, cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies 48Tristan Girard-GaymardPART II METAVERSE AND CITIZENS5 The legal personality of avatars: does ‘A2A’ have any place in the legalsystem of the future? 60Mark Fenwick and Stefan Wrbka6 Fundamental rights and the metaverse: avatar–player relationships 78Letizia Coppo7 Consumer protection in the metaverse 97Francisco de Elizalde8 Metaverse and data protection 117Lokke MoerelPART III METAVERSE, BUSINESS AND LAW: A NEW MARKET OFGOODS AND SERVICES9 Metaverse and competition law 158Andrea Piletta Massaro10 Trade marks and image rights in the metaverse 176Enrico Bonadio and Rishabh Anjay Mohnot11 Copyright and metaverse 189Péter Mezei and Gunjan Chawla Arora12 Patent law and metaverse 206Iony Randrianirina13 Fashion in the metaverse 216Barbara Pozzo14 Legal services and the metaverse 228Pınar Çağlayan Aksoy15 E-commerce in virtual worlds: Digital Services Act 244Cristina Poncibò and Luigi CantisaniPART IV METAVERSE AND PRIVATE LAW16 Property in the metaverse 260Flora Vern17 Contract law in the metaverse 278André Janssen18 Tort law in the metaverse 291Marta Infantino and Mauro BussaniPART V GOVERNANCE AND REGULATION19 Adaptability of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive to the metaverse 310Mateja Durovic20 Banking laws and the metaverse 334Suneel Anand Sundharesan and Anoop Ashok21 The metaverse and criminal law 349Caroline Peloso22 Dispute resolution and the metaverse 360Pietro Ortolani23 Applicable law in the metaverse: A European international private lawperspective 374Cécile Pellegrini24 Beyond the universe 397Larry A. DiMatteo and Michel Cannarsa

‘To write a real book about virtual worlds is audacious. To write on virtual worlds, such as the metaverse, before it really exists fully, might seem forgetful of reality. To be ready for the deployment of the metaverse (presented as a network of contracts), actors of many fields need to prepare and adapt to these new challenges. The authors give to the community the full picture of the legal challenges and potential solutions, meeting the expectations of everyone interested. This Research Handbook is not about the future or the virtual, it is about preparing today, in reality, what might well happen in virtual worlds in a couple of years from now. This Research Handbook is the perfect tool to answer many of these challenges, in a thoughtful and effective way.’