The transformation of the principle of freedom of contract in the relationships between tour operators and travel agents at the digital stage of the development of tourism law

The article examines the impact of digital transformation on the classical civil law principle of freedom of contract in the tourism sector. The work justifies the need to transition to a model of "imperative interventions" as the only way to protect the weaker party and preserve the principle of freedom of contract in the digital environment. The object of the study comprises contractual relations between tour operators and travel agencies in the context of the implementation of digital technologies. The subject of the research includes: - regulatory legal acts governing the legal mechanisms for the implementation of the principle of freedom of contract (Article 421 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation) in the tourism sector; - contractual structures regulating the relationships between tour operators and travel agencies; - scientific publications addressing the issues of the research. The aim of the study is to identify the transformation of the principle of freedom of contract in relations between tour operators and travel agencies at the current stage of the development of the tourism industry, as well as to theoretically justify the necessity of transitioning from discretion to a model of "regulated digital freedom" through the introduction of imperative regulation. The methodology of the research includes: the formal-legal method, systemic method, dialectical method, synthesis, and the method of legal modeling. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the comprehensive rethinking of the principle of freedom of contract in the context of digital transformation. The work proves that imperative regulation does not restrict but, on the contrary, ensures the realization of freedom of contract in the digital environment. Particularly significant is the justification of the dialectic of the interaction between law and technology: the study demonstrates that the contradictions between legal norms and digital solutions are surmountable—imperative regulation can serve as a tool for their harmonization, allowing for a balance of interests to be maintained in the technological development of the industry. The methodological novelty consists in the application of a synthesis of three approaches—the formal-legal, systemic, and dialectical approaches—for the analysis of the transformation of contractual relations in the digital economy. This allowed not only to identify deep-rooted contradictions in legal regulation and trace the evolution of the principle of freedom of contract through three stages (from absolute freedom to standardization and further to synthesis) but also to convincingly justify the necessity of imperative norms as a condition for the realization of freedom of contract.