UNUnited Nations Economic Commission for Europe

Legal Instruments, Norms and Standards - International Legal and Commercial Practice

Activities promoting trade expansion: contract practices and arbitration

The former Committee on Trade, Industry and Enterprise Development has sought to promote trade through practical arrangements and improved legal or contract practices affecting trade. During the years 1953-1961 the Group of Experts on International Contract Practices in Industry drew up a series of standard general conditions of sale for the export and import of engineering equipment. This activity was later extended to other sectors and standard contracts or general conditions of sale have been drawn up for a number of products and services. The Group of Experts on ICP (formerly the Working Party on International Legal and Commercial Practice - WP.5) has also prepared guidelines for drawing up contracts and guides on different issues (see General conditions of sale and standard clauses drawn up under the auspices of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe).

European Convention on International Commercial Arbitration of April 1961

This Convention established a mechanism whereby arbitrators may be designated in cases where the parties to a contract do not succeed in agreeing among themselves on such a designation. The Convention also provides for the settlement of questions which may arise concerning the relationship of international commercial arbitration procedures to the rights of parties to have recourse to courts of law. In addition, optional UNECE arbitration rules have been prepared which may be used by parties to international commercial transactions, if they so desire, for insertion in their contracts.

Website