Unfair Consumer Contract Terms Under Macedonian Law: How the Old and the New Function in Practice

This article analyses the functioning in practice of the system of substantive regulation of unfair terms in consumer contracts, introduced into Macedonian law as part of the harmonization obligations of the EU accession process. Specifically, the article seeks to establish the possible reasons for the absence of substantial evidence of application of the rules on unfair contract terms in consumer contracts in Macedonian practice. In providing an explanation, the focus is on the transposition of the consumer acquis and the Unfair Contract Terms Directive into national law, the enforcement structure for consumer law, and the relationship with the pre-existing civil law. In sum, the inconsistencies and incompleteness of the transposition, the weak and complex enforcement structure, as well as the unsettled relationship with the already existing civil law rules on similar topics have all contributed to weaken the practical significance of the special law on unfair contract terms.