UN convention helps businesses solve trade disputes

HCM Cit​y (VNA) – The UN Convention on International Sale of Goods (CISG), which will take effect in Vietnam on January 1, 2017, is expected to help businesses settle trade disputes, heard a workshop held in Ho Chi Minh City on October 25.

Studies conducted by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Foreign Trade University showed that over 80 percent of Vietnamese enterprises do not apply the law correctly in business contracts due to a lack of knowledge, fear of risks and legal costs.

Statistics unveiled that 65 percent of countries that have goods sale disputes with Vietnam are CISG members.

The convention will create a legal framework for parties to deal with disputes in the field, said Dean of the Law Faculty at the Foreign Trade University Nguyen Minh Hang.

Once the CISG comes into force, goods sale contracts between Vietnamese businesses and CISG partners will be automatically adjusted, experts said.

Deputy Director of the HCM City Investment and Trade Promotion Centre Nguyen Tuan said Vietnam ’s engagement in the CISG marks a new stride in the country’s international economic integration.

The correct application of the CISG will help businesses mitigate risks and avoid disputes while increasing their opportunities to seek new partners, he added.

There will also be challenges, the panels said, referring to differences between the CISG and Vietnamese law.

Participants suggested businesses combine the application of other legal regulations such as the Law on Civil Procedures and the Law on Trade to mitigate risks.

The CISG is a significant international convention on multilateral trade, which is applied in 85 member nations, including most of Vietnam’s major partners like the US, Japan, and the Republic of Korea.-VNA