Does International Trade Need a Doctrine of Transnational Law?

This paper looks at the current status and role of specific commercial contract law both national and international in view of recent European contract law reform. It reviews the value and necessity of a special and separate contract law for merchants in a global market and discusses critically the terminology, doctrine and objectives which this law is based upon. For a long time the choice of transnational law rules which are often non-state law has been marginalised and made impossible in state court proceedings. The new Common European Sales Law circumvents this problem by proposing to be used as national law. International practice in commercial dispute settlement may therefore still remain at the forefront of promoting and modelling the use of transnational contract law.

A timely review of the drafting process at the first release of the new European Common Sales Law Reviews the international legal framework for a new European Contract Law Sets out the role and importance of commercial contract law in todays' integrating legal world Provides a review of recent literature on the choice of law aspects of transnational contract law Explains the necessity of a proper doctrine of transantional contract law Outlines possible limitations and problems for the use of transnational commercial contract law Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras