The Impact of the Cisg on the American and Canadian Courts

The United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) is generally perceived as a successful example of unified law. This Convention created a uniform international sales law by regulating the rights and obligations of buyers and sellers in international transactions for the sale of goods. Civil law countries, particularly European Union members, have reported a large number of CISG cases. By contrast, common law contracting states -including the U.S., Canada- have not accepted CISG with the alacrity one might expect, given their prominent position in world trade. The United States formally ratified the CISG on December 11, 1986. This Convention was acceded to in Canada on 23 April 1991 and came into force on 1 May 1992. The inventory of U.S and Canadian cases that apply this treaty continues to grow. The recent decisions by U.S and Canadian courts raise CISG issues of interest to American and Canadian lawyers. Thus, this book will consider the impact of the CISG on the United States and Canadian courts. It turns to CISG cases decided in the U.S. and Canada, and the reluctant acceptance of CISG in these jurisdictions.