The Lex Mercatoria Doctrine and the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts
![handle is hein.journals/geojintl28 and id is 953 raw text is: THE LEX MERCATORIA DOCTRINE AND THE
UNIDROIT PRINCIPLES OF INTERNATIONAL
COMMERCIAL CONTRACTS
KLAUS PETER BERGER*
I. INTRODUCTION
In May 1994, after almost fifteen years of preparation, the Interna-
tional Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT), seated
in Rome, produced the official text of the Principles of International
Commercial Contracts (Principles).' Initially published in English
and French, the Principles have also been translated into German,
Italian, Spanish, and other languages.2
As stated in the introduction of their Preamble, the Principles aim to
establish general rules of international commercial contracts.3 The
official commentary clarifies that the Principles represent a system of
rules of contract law which are common to existing national legal
systems or best adapted to the special requirements of international
commercial transactions.'4 This statement reflects the dual approach
taken by the drafters. The Principles are intended to convey to interna-
tional contract drafters and arbitrators the notion of legal neutrality5
* S.J.D., University of Bielefeld; J.D., University of Cologne; L.L.M., University of Virginia;
Professor of Private, Commercial, Comparative and Private International Law; Director, Institute
for International Business Law, Center for Transnational Law (CENTRAL), Mfinster University,
Germany.
1. PRINCIPLES OF INTERNATIONAL COMMERCIAL CONTRACTS, (UNIDROIT ed., 1994) [hereinafter
PRINCIPLES]; PRINCIPES RELATIFS AUX CONTRATS DU COMMERCE INTERNATIONAL (UNIDROIT ed., 1994).
For a detailed account of the drafting history, see MICHAEL J. BONELL, AN INTERNATIONAL
RESTATEMENT OF CONTRACr LAw, 19-30 (2d ed. 1997) [hereinafter AN INTERNATIONAL RESTATE-
MENT]; KLAUS PETER BERGER, FORMALISIERTE ODER SCHLEICHENDE KODIFIZIERUNG DES TRANSNATION-
ALEN WIRTSCHAFFSRECHTS [FORMALISTIC OR CREEPING CODIFICATION OF TRANSNATIONAL ECONOMIC
LAw] 139 (1996) [hereinafter SCHLEICHENDE KODIFIZIERUNG].
2. See the collection of translations into French, German, Italian, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese,
Japanese, and Russian reprinted in AN INTERNATIONAL RESTATEMENT, supra note 1, at 293.
3. The Preamble is reprinted infra note 78. The Preamble sets forth the purposes of the
UNIDROIT Principles. See Franco Ferrari, Le champ d'application des Pnncipes pour les contrats
commerciaux internationaux ilaboris par UNIDROIT [The Scope of Applicability of Pinciples of
International Commercial Contracts Drafted by UN1DROIM], 1995 REVUE INTERNATIONALE DE DROIT
COMPARE [R.I.D.C.] 985,986, 991,993.
4. PRINCIPLES, supra note 1, at 3 (cmL no. 4.a to Preamble).
5. See Hans van Houtte, The UNIDROITPrinciples ofInternational Commercial Contracts, 11 ARB.
INT'L 373, 374 (1995); Patrick Brazil, UNLDRO)TPninciples of International Commercial Contracts in the](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/geojintl28&div=44&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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The Lex Mercatoria Doctrine and the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts
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