LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

CISG ANTECEDENTS

Match-up of CISG article 79 with ULIS provisions

CISG Article 79 is a revised version of the exemptions clause in ULIS Article 74, with many significant modifications. For analysis of them, see Stoll in Commentary on the UN Convention on the International Sale of Goods, Peter Schlechtriem ed. (Oxford 1998) 601-603.

     CISG Article 79                        ULIS Article 74 
                                               
1. A party is not liable for a      1. Where one of the parties 
failure to perform any of his       has not performed one of 
obligations if he proves that       his obligations, he shall not 
the failure was due to an           be liable for such non- 
impediment beyond his               performance if he can prove 
control and that he could           that it was due to circumstances 
not reasonably be expected          which, according to the 
to have taken the impediment        intention of the parties at 
into account at the time of         the time of the conclusion of 
the conclusion of the contract      the contract, he was not 
or to have avoided or               bound to take into account or 
overcome it or its                  to void or to overcome; in the 
consequences.                       absence of any expression of 
                                    the intention of the parties, 
2. If the party's failure is due    regard shall be had to what 
to the failure by a third person    reasonable persons in the 
whom he has engaged to              same situation would have 
perform the whole or a part         intended. 
of the contract, that party is 
exempt from liability only if:      2. Where the circumstances 
(a) he is exempt under the          which gave rise to the non- 
preceding paragraph; and (b)        performance of the obligation 
the person whom he has so           constituted only a temporary 
engaged would be so exempt          impediment to performance, 
if the provisions of that           the party in default shall 
paragraph were applied to him.      nevertheless be permanently 
                                    relieved of his obligation 
3. The exemption provided by        if, by reason of the delay, 
this article has effect for the     performance would be so 
period during which the             radically changed as to 
impediment exists.                  amount to the performance 
                                    of an obligation quite different 
4. The party who fails to perform   from that contemplated by the 
must give notice to the other       the contract. 
party of the impediment and its 
effect on his ability to perform.   3. The relief provided by this 
If the notice is not received by    Article for one of the parties 
the other party within a reasonable shall not exclude the 
time after the party who fails to   avoidance of the contract 
perform knew or ought to have       under some other provision 
known of the impediment, he is      of the present Law or deprive 
liable for damages resulting        the other party of any right 
from such non-receipt.              which he has under the present 
                                    Law to reduce the price, unless 
5. Nothing in this article          the circumstances which entitled 
prevents either party from          the first party to relief were 
exercising any right other          caused by the act of the other 
than to claim damamges under        party or of some person for 
this Convention.                    whose conduct he was 
                                    responsible.