That changed, however, on 4 March 2013. In ratifying the CISG, Brazil took another important step in its efforts towards becoming one of the strongest economies in the world.
The CISG will become effective for Brazil on 1 April 2014. By joining the convention, the world’s biggest coffee producer opened its doors to international investors and further increased the potential of its growing economy. It also offered foreign businesses greater security by accepting this standard international legal regulation. The biggest advantage of the samba capital’s accession to the CISG is that businesses from other Contracting States no longer have to set out complicated provisions in contracts with Brazilian partners. Nor will they be entirely dependent on foreign law provisions they may not be familiar with, since they will now be able to rely on the regulations contained in the CISG.
International sales contracts between parties from different states, both of which are signatories, will automatically be governed by the CISG. This does not of course mean that the CISG cannot be excluded in whole or in part or that certain issues cannot be stipulated differently. Any exclusions must, however, be explicit. Each party should consider what is best in its own particular case, since the advantages or disadvantages of applying the CISG differ based on whether it is a purchaser or seller.
The CISG will thus undoubtedly provide greater legal certainty for foreign investors in international trade relations and negotiations from a substantive law perspective, which has been confirmed in practice and which investors are already accustomed to, know rather well, and can rely on.
Electronic communications Another potentially important event in the field of international business relationships which occurred within the framework of the UN’s UNCITRAL Commission concerns the effectiveness of the Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts (CUECIC). Adopted on 23 November 2005, the CUECIC became effective on 1 March 2013 but so far only for the Dominican Republic, Honduras and Singapore.
The CUECIC should contribute first of all to resolving issues connected with the use of electronic communications when concluding international commercial agreements. This is already common practice in international trade but is not covered in the CISG. However the scope of the CUECIC is wider than merely regulating international trade agreements. For example, the CUECIC will apply to international service offers and software licenses.
The CUECIC’s most important contribution is that electronic communications will be accepted as meeting standard written (documentary) form requirements. In addition, an electronic signature will carry the same legal weight as a handwritten signature.
In practical terms, the CUECIC is not yet important for the Czech Republic as this country has not yet signed the convention and it remains an open question whether it will in the future. Of the
eighteen signatories, Montenegro is the only European country and Russia and China are the only major ones. Although the practical importance of the CUECIC is negligible, it is undoubtedly a step in the right direction towards harmonizing the rules for international trade.