Lachmi Singh

The Vienna Convention on the International Sale of Goods 1980 (CISG)

Introduction and background Due to the effects of increased trade amongst states in the late twentieth century, the need for a harmonised instrument of international sales law was expressed. It was envisaged that a harmonising measure would increase international trade, promote fairness and reduce the negotiation cost of transactions. In 1929, Ernst Rabel working with the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT), sought to establish a uniform law governing transactions of sale. This resulted in two Hague Conventions in 1964: the Uniform Law for the International Sale of Goods (ULIS), and the Uniform Law on the Formation of Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (ULF). These Conventions came into force in 1972, but they had limited success as uniform law, because they were generally considered too wide-ranging in scope and thought to favour industrialised nations. They were therefore only ratified by nine countries, predominately European nations. The failure of these Conventions led to the recognition that more ef ort was needed to create a uniform sales law that could be applied in all states regardless of their legal, social or economic backgrounds. In 1966, the General Assembly of the United Nations established the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). h is working group sought to review ULIS and ULF in order to create a new Convention, and the result of their efforts were completed in 1978. The UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) was signed in Vienna in 1980, and came into force in 1988 upon gaining the required number of ratifications. As of 1 August 2011, UNCITRAL reports that seventy-seven states have adopted the CISG.

Commercial Law: The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008

Introduction This chapter analyses the provisions of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and the new, comprehensive regime of controls that have been put in place to protect consumers from unfair and unscrupulous activities by traders. The Regulations replace many of the pre-existing provisions while also extending protection in other areas Section 2 considers the scope of the Regulations, including what constitutes a commercial practice, the meaning of consumers and which transactions are covered by the Regulations. Section 3 analyses the prohibition against unfair commercial practices and the criminal offence created for breaches of that regulation, and section 4 deals with the prohibition against code owners using codes of conduct to promote unfair commercial activities. Section 5 examines the controls over misleading actions that have replaced and extended the law in this area, including the definition of a misleading action, and the regulation 5(4) factors. Section 6 deals with the issue of misleading omissions to prevent traders from misleading consumers by omitting or hiding material information. Section 7 looks at the prohibition against aggressive commercial practices, including an analysis of the various types of activity that can be classed as aggressive. Section 8 analyses the thirty-one commercial practices detailed in Schedule 1 to the Regulations, which are always presumed to be unfair, and section 9 discusses the offences created by the Regulations.

Commercial Law: E-commerce and Distance Selling

Introduction The sale of goods by some form of distance selling has been in place for many decades, initially through the use of advertisements and catalogues, but more latterly through TV advertising and the Internet. This chapter analyses the current legal controls over distance selling in its various forms. Section 2 looks at the background to the subject and the rise of Internet selling. Section 3 analyses the requirements of the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 including details of the trader; price; commercial communications; making the contract; placing the order; remedies; and electronic signatures. Section 4 introduces the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000 and considers the provisions relating to information requirements; cancellation rights; and cancellation periods. Background The major development of the last twenty years in the law relating to the sale and supply of goods and services has been the dramatic move towards the purchase of goods and services via the Internet. Although distance selling occurred before this through the use of catalogues, telephone, etc., it has been the advent of the Internet which has occasioned a major change in the way in which both business buyers and consumers acquire goods and services. Given the prominence of Internet sales now, it seems hard to remember that the World Wide Web was not made public until 1991, with leading online stores not being founded until the mid-1990s. Nowadays, purchasing on the Internet is an integral part of the supply process, whether the purchaser is a business or a consumer. E-commerce has undoubtedly contributed to broadening the purchase options for a buyer, there being no need for seller and purchaser to meet face to face or even be in the same country or continent. Buyers have the ability to access goods and services from all over the world at the touch of a button. Nonetheless, there remains concern that while Internet buying has grown within an individual country, the amount of Internet cross-border trading involving consumers remains low and is an issue that must be addressed in order to promote trade generally.

Commercial Law: The Authority of an Agent

Introduction The purpose of Part 1 Chapter 2 is to provide a detailed commentary on the different types of authority that relate to an agency agreement, including actual authority. The authority of an agent Chapter 1 highlighted the problems associated with defining the terms ‘agent’ and ‘agency’. Somewhat unsurprisingly, the same problem arises with respect to the different categories of authority. Bradgate pointed out that ‘one of the great difficulties of the law of agency is that terminology is not used consistently’. For the purposes of this chapter, we will look at actual authority (both express and implied), apparent authority and usual authority. Actual authority The actual authority of an agency is granted by an agreement with the principal, which could be classified either as ‘implied’ or ‘express’ authority. This was a point famously referred to by Lord Denning MR in Hely-Hutchinson v. Brayhead Ltd : actual authority may be express or implied. It is express when it is given by words, such as when a board of directors pass a resolution which authorises two of their number to sign cheques. It is implied when it is inferred from the conduct of the parties and the circumstances of the case, such as when the board of directors appoint one of their number to be managing director. They thereby impliedly authorise him to do all such things as fall within the usual scope of his office.

Commercial Law: Product Liability under the Consumer Protection Act 1987

Introduction The Product Liability Directive was given effect in the United Kingdom via Part I of the Consumer Protection Act 1987. In passing the Act, Parliament took the opportunity to legislate for both product liability and product safety, reinforcing the indisputable link between the civil law consequences and criminal law liability for defective products. Criminal product safety controls prohibit producers from placing unsafe goods on the market, while compensation under product liability occurs where defective goods have caused injuries to product users. However, this chapter only deals with civil liability under Part I of the 1987 Act, criminal law controls being beyond the remit of this text. Section 1(1) of the 1987 Act makes clear that Part I of the Act is to be construed so as to comply with the Product Liability Directive. This approach was confirmed in the decision in EC Commission v. United Kingdom when it was held that the development risk defence in section 4(1)(e) of the Act must be construed in line with the Directive even though the wording of the Act differs significantly from that of the Directive.