Legal Studies in Digital Age 2 Serial Number 4 2023 07 01 Smart Contracts and Legal Personality: Can Autonomous Code Bear Responsibility? Smart Contracts and Legal Personality: Can Autonomous Code Bear Responsibility? 49 63 EN Journal Article 2023 05 13 <p>Smart contracts have evolved from basic automated scripts into increasingly autonomous systems capable of executing, modifying, and enforcing digital transactions without continuous human oversight. Their integration into decentralized blockchain networks challenges foundational legal concepts related to intention, agency, liability, and control. As these systems operate across jurisdictions, interact with off-chain data sources, and manage significant economic value, they expose gaps in existing legal doctrines that were built around human actors and centralized organizational structures. This narrative review synthesizes technological, doctrinal, and regulatory perspectives to examine whether autonomous smart-contract code can meaningfully bear legal responsibility. It analyzes how the architecture of blockchain networks, the nature of deterministic and adaptive smart contracts, and the dynamics of decentralized ecosystems complicate responsibility attribution. It further evaluates the suitability of classical liability doctrines—contract, tort, agency, and vicarious liability—and compares emerging models for the treatment of non-human actors such as AI systems and algorithmic agents. Global regulatory approaches are reviewed, including EU digital governance frameworks, U.S. federal and state-level developments, and proactive initiatives in jurisdictions such as Singapore, Switzerland, and the UAE. Emerging governance models involving mandatory oversight, code registration, insurance-based liability, and DAO legislation are assessed in light of their capacity to address the accountability gap created by decentralized automation. The review concludes that while smart contracts themselves cannot meaningfully possess legal personality, legal systems must develop new mechanisms to allocate responsibility among the human and institutional actors who design, deploy, and benefit from their operation. This adaptation is essential for ensuring fairness, transparency, and trust in an increasingly automated digital environment.</p> https://www.jlsda.com/index.php/lsda/article/download/319/259