  We propose and study properties of maximum likelihood estimators in the class
of conditional transformation models. Based on a suitable explicit
parameterisation of the unconditional or conditional transformation function,
we establish a cascade of increasingly complex transformation models that can
be estimated, compared and analysed in the maximum likelihood framework. Models
for the unconditional or conditional distribution function of any univariate
response variable can be set-up and estimated in the same theoretical and
computational framework simply by choosing an appropriate transformation
function and parameterisation thereof. The ability to evaluate the distribution
function directly allows us to estimate models based on the exact likelihood,
especially in the presence of random censoring or truncation. For discrete and
continuous responses, we establish the asymptotic normality of the proposed
estimators. A reference software implementation of maximum likelihood-based
estimation for conditional transformation models allowing the same flexibility
as the theory developed here was employed to illustrate the wide range of
possible applications.
