The Governing Council of UNIDROIT at its 90th session formally adopted on 10 May 2011 the third edition of the Principles of International Commercial Contracts ("UNIDROIT Principles 2010"). The UNIDROIT Principles 2010 contain new provisions on restitution in case of failed contracts, illegality, conditions, and plurality of obligors and of obligees.
UNIDROIT Principles 2010 in book form is available at UNIDROIT. >>> order form
The new edition of the Principles is being given the widest publicity by, among others, the organisation of events aimed at promoting it in the various regions of the world. >>> read more
The UNIDROIT Governing Council at its 91st session in May 2012, following a proposal submitted by Professor Don Wallace (Georgetown University School of Law; President of the American Foundation of International Uniform Law), decided to set up a restricted Working Group for the preparation of Model Clauses for use by parties intending to indicate in their contract more precisely in what way they wish to see the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts used during the performance of the contract or when a dispute arises. The Working Group, composed of internationally renowned experts in the field of private international law and arbitration, held its first session in Rome from 11 to 12 February 2013 >>> Further information
The Protocol to the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment on Matters specific to Space Assets was adopted at the diplomatic Conference held in Berlin, at the kind invitation of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany, from 27 February to 9 March 2012. This new Protocol seeks to extend the Cape Town regimen to commercial financing in outer space.
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UNIDROIT has started work in the field of close-out netting which is a mechanism applied by financial institutions and other participants in the financial market in their daily operations to reduce their credit risk exposure. In three sessions from April 2011 to February 2012, a UNIDROIT Study group established a set of draft Principles on the enforceability of close-out netting provisions, and at its 91st session in May 2012, the UNIDROIT Governing Council agreed to convene a Committee of governmental experts to consider these draft Principles. The Committee of governmental experts met for two sessions, in October 2012 and March 2013 respectively. At its second meeting (4-8 March 2013), the Committee of governmental experts approved a revised set of the Draft Principles as Draft Principles on the Operation of Close-out Netting Provisions. The UNIDROIT Governing Council, at its 92nd session held from 8 to 10 May 2013, adopted the Principles on the Operation of Close-out Netting Provisions retaining the text of the provisions as prepared by the Committee. >>> Further information and documentation
UNIDROIT is envisaging the development of a legislative guide on Principles and rules capable of enhancing trading in securities in emerging markets. As a first step, the UNIDROIT Secretariat is preparing a guidance document intended to provide advice for countries that ratify the 2009 Geneva Securities Convention on how best to incorporate the Convention and integrate it into their domestic legal systems (“Accession Kit”). >>> Further information and documentation
The UNIDROIT Secretariat will conduct informal consultations, with a view to ascertaining the scope and feasibility of the project, in particular whether such an instrument might, following the example of most liability instruments, set a liability limit, that would also help the insurability of the activities, and cover aspects such as liability channelling, provision for supplementary compensation to guarantee satisfactory recovery of losses, and criteria for identifying the competent jurisdiction. >>> Read more
The UNIDROIT Secretariat will conduct informal consultations with relevant sectors, including industry sectors, so as further to develop an understanding of the potential scope and advantages of the project.
The Governing Council of UNIDROIT, at its 91st session held in Rome in May 2012, established a list of possible subjects which may be developed in the area of private law and agricultural development Further information and decided that work should start, as a first topic, with the preparation of a legal guide on contract farming. Accordingly, a Working Group has been set for the Preparation of a Legal Guide on Contract Farming, and the first meeting of the Working Group was held in Rome from 28 to 31 January 2013. >>> Further information
These Model Provisions, established by a group of experts convened by the UNESCO and UNIDROIT Secretariats, are intended to assist domestic bodies in the establishment of a normative framework for heritage protection, to adopt effective legislation for the establishment and recognition of the State’s ownership of undiscovered cultural objects with a view, inter alia, to facilitating restitution in case of unlawful removal. They are followed by guidelines aimed at better understanding the provisions. >>> Read more