Pursues a multidisciplinary approach to the analysis of blockchain technology

Includes important contributions from a regulatory perspective

Gathers contributions by an international team of authors

Introduction: The Challenges and Opportunities of Blockchain Technologies.- Part I: Understanding Blockchain: the Legal Perspective.- Blockchain Based Organizations and the Governance of On-Chain and Off-Chain Rules: Towards Autonomous (Legal) Orders?.- The Role of Blockchain in the Public Sector: An Overview.- Some Historical and Philosophical Remarks on the Rule of Law in the Time of Automation.- Solving Cryptographic Puzzles: How to Mine?.- Part II: Governance and Regulatory Issues.- Cyberspace, Blockchain, Governance: How Technology Implies Normative Power and Regulation.- Blockchain: The Regulatory Challenges for Central Banks and Financial Sector.- Blockchain-Based Financial Investments and the Role of Regulatory Authorities: The Italian Perspective.- Are VAT Rules Really Inadequate for Distributed Ledger Technology's Transactions?.- Blockchain and Comparative Law.- Part III: Smart Contracts and Dispute Resolution.- Smart (Legal) Contracts,or: Which (Contract) Law for Smart Contracts?.- Smart (Legal) Contracts: Forum and Applicable Law Issues.- Integrating Smart Contracts with the Legacy Legal System: A US Perspective.- About Smart Contract Dispute Resolution.- Smart Contracts, ODR and the New Landscape of the Dispute Resolution Market.- Blockchain, Smart Contracts and New Certainties: What Future for Notaries?.- Part IV: The "Sustainable" Applications of Blockchain.- Introduction to Distributed Ledger Technologies for Social, Development, and Humanitarian Impact.- Blockchain, Earth Observation and Intelligent Data Systems: Implications and Opportunities for the Next Generation of Digital Services.- Justice for All: Jur's Open Layer as a Case Study, Towards a More Open and Sustainable Approach.- Blockchain and the GDPR: New Challenges for Privacy and Security.- Part V: Conclusions.- Blockchain, Law and Governance: General Conclusion.