Blockchain technology has enabled so-called smart contracts between different parties on a decentralized network. These self-enforceable and self-executable computerized contracts could initiate a fundamental paradigm shift in the understanding and functioning of our legal practices. Opportunities for their application are increasingly understood, and numerous tests of feasibility have been completed. However, only very few use cases have yet been implemented at scale. This article—as the first of its kind—comprehensively analyzes the underlying challenges and locates a key reason for the slow adoption in the discrepancy between legal requirements and IT capabilities. Our work combines a wide range of academic sources and interviews with 30 domain experts from IT, the legal domain and private industry. First, we establish that smart contracts still fall within the boundaries of the general legal framework. We then systematically dissect current shortcomings of smart contracts on three distinct levels, namely, (1) how smart contracts are likely to cause conflicts with existing laws, (2) how smart contracts are intrinsically limited on an individual contract level and (3) how they are impeded by their current technical design. Across those levels, we dissect 20 distinct issues concerning the current implementation of smart contracts for which we derive potential remedies. We further outline implications for policy-makers as well as IT management, and examine how information systems research can play an important role in advancing smart contracts. Finally, we show how managerial and organizational issues might represent an ongoing challenge for the widespread adoption of smart contracts.

中文翻译：

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代码是法律吗？支持区块链的智能合约的当前法律和技术采用问题和补救措施

区块链技术在去中心化网络上实现了各方之间所谓的智能合约。这些自动执行和自动执行的计算机化合同可以在我们的法律实践的理解和运作方面引发根本性的范式转变。人们越来越了解它们的应用机会，并且已经完成了许多可行性测试。但是，只有极少数用例尚未大规模实施。作为同类文章中的第一篇，本文全面分析了潜在挑战，并找出了法律要求与 IT 能力之间差异导致采用缓慢的关键原因。我们的工作结合了广泛的学术资源和对来自 IT、法律领域和私营行业的 30 位领域专家的采访。第一的，我们确定智能合约仍然属于一般法律框架的范围。然后，我们在三个不同的层次上系统地剖析了当前智能合约的缺点，即（1）智能合约如何可能与现有法律发生冲突，（2）智能合约如何从本质上限制在单个合约层面以及（3）如何他们受到当前技术设计的阻碍。在这些层面上，我们剖析了与当前智能合约实施相关的 20 个不同问题，我们从中得出了潜在的补救措施。我们进一步概述了对政策制定者和 IT 管理的影响，并研究了信息系统研究如何在推进智能合约方面发挥重要作用。最后，