A manifestação de vontade nos contratos digitais

validade jurídica, prova eletrônica e limites à automação contratual

Abstract

The digitalization of legal relations has reshaped the formation, execution, and evidentiary treatment of contracts, requiring a functional reinterpretation of traditional legal doctrines. This article examines the legal validity of digital contracts based on the centrality of the manifestation of intent and its evidentiary verifiability, with particular attention to its implications for judicial credit enforcement. The study investigates to what extent consent expressed in electronic environments may be deemed legally valid and effective, especially when digital contracts are relied upon as enforceable instruments or as written evidence in summary proceedings. A doctrinal legal methodology is adopted, combining normative, doctrinal, and case law analysis, complemented by a comparative approach between European and United States regulatory frameworks on electronic contracting. The article concludes that the effectiveness of digital contracting depends not merely on the acceptance of electronic form, but on the ability to demonstrate, in a legally controllable manner, the manifestation of intent, the integrity of contractual content, and the existence of the obligation, with the robustness of the evidentiary architecture constituting a central element in credit recovery.