International Contracts

Abstract

Since at least the days of lex mercatoria, merchants in different jurisdictions have had to navigate the distinctive issues and risks that are present when entering into contractual arrangements or undertaking obligations across borders or in foreign lands. And, as the village marketplace of old has become a global marketplace, international contracts have become ubiquitous. Today, issues that frequently arise in international contracts are not limited to merchants or business transactions, but instead cut across practice area and across jurisdiction.

This article identifies some of the key developments for international contracts that occurred in 2017 in a variety of jurisdictions, with particular attention to commercial relationships that arise in connection with product distribution. Specifically, in this article we cover developments concerning international sales law, choice of law in Romania, franchising in Canada, termination of commercial agency in Argentina, a court decision on scope of commercial agency law in the UK, and the creation of a new commercial court in the Netherlands.