| Abstract [eng] |
Sharing economy, as a new economic direction, has recently received a great deal of attention from legislators and fierce debates among proponents of traditional economy due to legislation and requirements for sharing economy entities. After the California Assembly Bill 5 has entered into force, a disproportionate regulatory threat to the sharing economy has been created in the State of California, which may impact further development of the sharing economy and is very closely linked to the development of the innovation and economy as a whole. The regulatory challenges imposed on the sharing economy also challenge law, lawmakers and fundamental constitutional values. Understanding the impact of law on emerging businesses is crucial for lawmakers in order to create proportionate regulation whereas this can be best achieved through the theories of the School of Economic Law. This master thesis, in particular, describes in detail the sharing economy, its uniqueness and separation from the traditional economy. Understanding of sharing economy allows to identify businesses that are using this type of economy and compare them with traditional businesses providing alternative services and/or goods, whose regulatory differences in Lithuania, certain European Union countries and the United States are discussed in the work. The main focus in this work is placed on the assessment of the existing regulation in the light of economic arguments in law. Regulatory examples, such as California Assembly Bill 5, which can have a significant impact on the sharing economy, are provided. These examples are analysed in accordance with the theories of the School of Economic Law, which are based on the publications of Richard Posner. These theories complement and, in some cases, substantiate the economic arguments used in the work and allow to identify the main principles that the legislator and/or courts should follow when making decisions regarding sharing economy based businesses. This work also outlines the criteria by which regulation can be identified as redundant. |
