Beyond the CISG: Utilizing UNIDROIT Principles to Synchronize International Contract Law Beyond Sales of Goods

Modern advancements have made it easier than ever for individuals and businesses to enter into cross-border transactions. Contract law in the United States employs legal instruments such as the UCC to aid contracting parties, and international law consists of tools such as the CISG supporting cross-border contracts for the sale of goods. Such tools are important because international transactions for goods occur frequently. This Comment will examine the complexities that arise in the face of international contracts, discuss tools for uniform law that are currently utilized by various governing bodies, and propose further implementation of uniform international contract law. In discussing these complexities, this Comment will focus on three objectives of uniform law: (1) improving certainty and predictability, (2) increasing accessibility to legal counsel, and (3) promoting freedom of contract. Given international contract law’s current disposition, the effectiveness of the CISG has seemingly opened a door for international contract law to be synchronized beyond sales of goods. With this possibility in mind, this Comment seeks to answer the questions of whether uniform international contract law should be expanded beyond the CISG, and what mechanisms there are to accomplish this expansion.