Christian Twigg-Flesner

Professor of Contract and Consumer Law

Deputy Head of School
Director of Teaching and Learning (T1&2)

Digital Technology and Contract, Consumer and Commercial Law; Contract Law; UK and EU Consumer Law; International Commercial Contracts Law.

School of Law
S2.15, Social Sciences Building
University of Warwick
Coventry CV4 7AL
United Kingdom

024 761 51040

Office Hours

Tuesdays, 1000-1100

Thursdays, 1000-1100 (not 19 March)

Bio

Christian Twigg-Flesner joined Warwick Law School in September 2017. He is Professor of Contract and Consumer Law.

He read law at the University of Sheffield (LLB in 1997 and PhD in 2002). He started his full-time academic career at Nottingham Trent University (1999-2002) before returning to Sheffield as Lecturer (2002-4). He joined the University of Hull in 2004 as Lecturer and was Professor of Commercial Law there from 2010 to 2017 and Head of the Law School from 2012-2014.

He is a Fellow of the European Law Institute and served on its Council from 2019 to 2023. He was an Academic Fellow of the Inner Temple from 2011-2014, and Senior International Fellow at the University of Bayreuth from 2016-2018.

Professor Christian Twigg-Flesner's research interests are broadly in the fields of Contract Law, Consumer Law, and Commercial Law. This includes domestic aspects (English Contract Law, UK Consumer Law, and transactional aspects of Commercial Law), European aspects (especially EU and comparative Consumer Law), and international/transnational dimensions (both Transnational Commercial Law and International Consumer Law).

The focus of his current research is the impact of digitalisation on these fields. This includes specific topics (e.g., automation of transactions through algorithms and Artificial Intelligence; 3D-printing; online platforms; or data transactions) and overarching themes (analytical methodology for law and technological change; legal disruption; shifts in the role of contracts from transactions to networks and governance systems).

His most recent books are the co-edited (with James Devenney) Disruption, Innovation and Re-alignment in UK Consumer Law and PolicyLink opens in a new window (Hart, 2026), Foundations of International Commercial LawLink opens in a new window (Routledge, 2021) and the co-edited (with Hans Micklitz) The Transformation of Consumer Law and Policy in Europe Link opens in a new window(Hart, 2023). He has also published widely on European Consumer and Contract law, including Rethinking EU Consumer LawLink opens in a new window (with Geraint Howells and Thomas Wilhelmsson) and The Europeanisation of Contract LawLink opens in a new window (2nd ed, 2013), and the edited Research Handbook on EU Consumer and Contract Law (Elgar, 2016).

SSRN Author page: https://ssrn.com/author=414604.

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6022-7229

External roles:

Managing Editor and Law Editor for the Journal of Consumer Policy
Series Editor for Elgar Studies in Contemporary Commercial Law
Member of the Innovation and Technology Law Laboratory

Publications

Published

Search for Christian Twigg-Flesner's profile

Highlighted

Recent publications:

Journal Article

Busch, Christoph and Twigg-Flesner, Christian, "A roadmap for regulating subscriptions in the Digital Fairness Act" (2024) 13 Journal of European Consumer and Markets Law (EuCML) 234-241.

Book Chapters

Twigg-Flesner, Christian and Howells, Geraint, "Adapting consumer law to new technologies" in R. Brownsword and L. Di Matteo (eds.) The Cambridge Handbook of the Governance of Technology: Discontent, Disconnect and Disruption (Cambridge University Press. 2025)

Twigg-Flesner, Christian (2025) "Contract automation - stretching functional equivalence and technological neutrality to breaking point?", in B. Zeller and C. Baasch Anderson(eds.) Routledge Handbook on Transnational Commercial Law (Routledge, 2025)

You can view some of my research on my SSRN Author page: https://ssrn.com/author=414604 .

Also visit my Orcid page at: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6022-7229

Teaching Projects

Funded

Title	Funder	Award start	Award end
From Smart Technologies to Smart Consumer Laws: Comparative Perspectives from Germany and the United Kingdom (AHRC DFG - Stirling lead).	AHRC	01 Feb 2022	31 Jan 2025

Highlighted

Guiding Principles and Model Rules on Digital Assistants for Consumer Contracts

Professor Christian Twigg-Flesner, together with Professors Teresa Rodríguez de las Heras Ballell, Christoph Busch, and Marie Jull Sørensen, served as a co-reporter for a European Law Institute Project on "Guiding Principles and Model Rules on Digital Assistants for Consumer Contracts". The project focused on the use of digital assistants (applications based on algorithmic decision-making (ADM), especially Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems utilising machine learning) in all the stages of the consumer contract life-cycle. Christian also served as the "person-with-file" (lead co-reporter) and main draftsperson.

More information is available from the project webpagesLink opens in a new window.

Smart Technology and Consumer Protection

Legal experts at the Universities of Stirling, Osnabrück, Warwick, and Bonn have launched a new study to ensure that consumer laws are as ‘smart’ as the emerging technologies that they regulate. This three-year project, running from February 2022 to February 2025, was funded by the AHRC-DFG UK-German Funding Initiative in the Humanities.

More information is available from the project webpages.

Impact

Legislation

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, Consolidation and Simplification of Consumer Law (November 2010): co-authored background report to inform the development of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (see Explanatory Notes)

House of Lords, Electronic Trade Documents Special Public Bill Committee, Written Evidence (published 20 January 2023) (2022-23 session)

House of Lords, European Union Committee, EU Consumer Rights Directive: getting it right, (2008-9 session, 18th report): oral evidence on 26 March 2009

House of Lords, European Union Committee, Protecting the consumers of timeshare products (2006-7 session, 3rd report): oral evidence on 25 October 2007

Policy

House of Commons Transport Committee, Volkswagen emissions scandal and vehicle type approval (12 July 2016): oral evidence on 25 April 2016 (video recording)

House of Lords, European Union Committee, EU Consumer Rights Directive: getting it right, (2008-9 session, 18th report): oral evidence on 26 March 2009

House of Lords, European Union Committee, Protecting the consumers of timeshare products (2006-7 session, 3rd report): oral evidence on 25 October 2007

Professional Practice

Research Supervision

Professor Twigg-Flesner welcomes enquiries from prospective PhD supervisees. Before e-mailing, please prepare a draft research proposal which corresponds with the the School of Law's requirements (scroll down to "Research Degrees" on the linked page). This should be included with your email.

He primarily offers supervision in the field of transactions (commercial, contract and consumer law), rather than regulation, in particular topics in any of the areas below. Please note that enquiries relating to other areas will not be replied to.

Contract law.
Consumer Law
The implications of developments in the digital economy for contract, commercial or consumer law (English, European or international). Please note that this excludes the regulation of cryptocurrencies.
Aspects of the law on the sale and supply of goods.
International Commercial Law (e.g., research related to different types of commercial contracts; the process of creating International Commercial Law; the relationship between commercial practice/customs and commercial law). Please note that this excludes the Conflict of Laws/Private International Law, Arbitration or dispute resolution generally, financial regulation, trade law and corporate/insolvency law.

Current Doctoral Supervisees:

Farah Abdin
Luigi Cantisani
Youngtae Han
Shengzhe Huang
Enes Polat
Xiaoshui Zhai