Countries have until January 2008 to sign up to the UN
Convention on Electronic Contracting, which has been drawn up to
help developing countries to frame law that takes account of
electronic negotiation and signing of contracts.
"We welcome the enhanced legal certainty and support for party
autonomy which the convention provides," said Christopher Kuner,
one of the ICC's experts in the area. "The other good news is that
it allows for electronic communications to satisfy the requirements
of other conventions without the need for those conventions to be
re-negotiated."
Any country which wishes to adopt the proposals as law must not
only sign up to the Convention but pass new legislation converting
it into the law of that country.
The Convention will make little difference in Europe, but could
prove of major assistance to developing nations.
"This is a good step forward, but it will make no real
difference in the UK or Europe or places like Australia or the US
that have good case law in place," said Jon Fell, a partner
specialising in e-commerce at Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind
OUT-LAW.COM.
"Where it will make a difference is in emerging countries and
countries with emerging legal systems, like China," said Fell.
The convention was discussed this month at the UN Commission on
International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) in New York. It provides further
detail to previous UNCITRAL guidelines, including the influential
model laws on e-commerce and e-signatures.
"The convention deals more with the nuts and bolts of how a
contract is made," said Fell. "It is good because it creates a
framework for these contracts."
