英文法与婚姻的选择：一个建议SSRN-ID325045.pdfVIP

Citation: 36 Fam. L.Q. 255 2002-2003 Content downloaded/printed from HeinOnline () Sat Mar 19 13:03:20 2011 -- Your use of this HeinOnline PDF indicates your acceptance of HeinOnlines Terms and Conditions of the license agreement available at /HOL/License -- The search text of this PDF is generated from uncorrected OCR text. -- To obtain permission to use this article beyond the scope of your HeinOnline license, please use: /ccc/basicSearch.do? operation=gosearchType=0 lastSearch=simpleall=ontitleOrStdNo=0014-729X Choice of Law and Marriage: A Proposal BRIAN H. BIX* I. Introduction Recent work has shown that in commercial transactions, respecting party choice regarding the law to be applied increases efficiency.1 The basic notion is that when parties choose one set of laws over another to govern their interactions (even, or especially, if the choice involves opting out of the default legal regime), it is because that choice better serves the interests of the parties. Is this a principle that can be gen- eralized? This article considers the special issues that would arise from attempting to extend this approach to choice of law to marriage. Why not allow parties about to marry to choose the set of laws that will govern their marriage-or at least the rules for entry into and exit from marriage (that is, divorce)? As an initial matter, respecting the parties choice might seem par- ticularly appropriate for marriage, as the subject matter is one of par- ticular interest for the people involved, as it concerns their individual preferences and their happiness in a way more deeply than most com- mercial transactions ever could. At the same time, some might argue * Frederick W. Thomas Professor of Law and