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A. CISG Comparative Editorial Project: the CISG as Uniform Sales Law

• The United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (1980) [CISG], attempts to create a uniform law for the international sale of goods. However, textual uniformity is a necessary but insufficient step towards achieving substantive legal uniformity, since the formulation and enactment of a uniform legal text carries no guarantee of its subsequent uniform application in practice.

• It is arguable that, in certain instances, general principles of international commercial law, such as those contained in parts of the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts 1994 and the Principles of European Contract Law 1998 - both of which are in the form of a "Restatement" of international contract law - could aid in the proper interpretation and application of the CISG as uniform sales law; a positive step towards substantive legal uniformity.

B. Purpose, Structure and Content of the CISG Comparative Project

• The purpose of the CISG-PECL and CISG-UNIDROIT Principles Comparative Editorial Project being conducted under the auspices of the Pace University Institute of International Commercial Law is to provide a comparative analysis of provisions of the CISG and sections with similar content in the PECL and in the UNIDROIT Principles.

• The aim of the exercise is to determine whether consideration of the counterpart provisions in the PECL and the UNIDROIT Principles could aid in the proper interpretation and application of the provisions of the CISG as the uniform international sales law and, if so, in which manner and to what extent.

• Each CISG-PECL and CISG-UNIDROIT Principles comparative match-up of counterpart provisions is accompanied by a section entitled "Editorial remarks", which contain scholarly analysis by reference to the available doctrine and jurisprudence on the corresponding provisions of the CISG. Academics and practitioners from all over the world are currently authoring the "Editorial remarks" for CISG-PECL and CISG-UNIDROIT comparative match ups.

• Dr. John Felemegas, Fellow, Pace University Institute of International Commercial Law, is the Captain and Editor of the CISG Comparative Project. John Felemegas, with assistance from Albert H. Kritzer, Executive Secretary, Pace University Institute of International Commercial Law, coordinates and edits the contributions from the scholars participating in the Project.

C. Publication of the CISG Comparative Project

• The results of the overall CISG-PECL and CISG-UNIDROIT Principles Comparative Project are being published online, as they become available, at the website of the Institute <http://cisgw3.law.pace.edu>.

• In addition to Internet publication, the comparative editorials will also be presented in a text commissioned by Transnational Publishers - the latter publication to occur when all of the sections of that text are at hand.

• Should you wish to obtain further information about the CISG case annotated comparatives, please do not hesitate to contact John Felemegas at <felemegj@optusnet.com.au> or Albert Kritzer at <akritzer@law.pace.edu>.