Former Foreign Minister János Martonyi chaired the panel discussion on the 35th anniversary of the Vienna Convention on International Sale of Goods on July 6. At the meeting it was announced that Hungary on this day will withdraw its written form declaration under the Convention. The meeting was part of the 48th session of the UNCITRAL between June 29 and July 16.
On 6 July, Hungary deposited an instrument with the Secretary-General of the United Nations withdrawing its "written form" declaration under the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG). With this action, Hungary joins the vast majority of CISG States Parties that do not require the written form for contracts for the international sale of goods.
Under the CISG, contracts for the international sale of goods do not need to be concluded in writing in order to be valid unless a State deposits a specific declaration to that effect. By withdrawing the declaration it made upon ratification of the CISG in 1983, Hungary now accepts the provisions allowing freedom of contractual form. Hungary's action is part of a current trend for States to reconsider declarations made upon signing or acceding to the CISG. Withdrawal of these declarations increases the level of legal uniformity in the scope of application of the Convention.
Hungary also withdrew a declaration indicating that it considered the General Conditions of Delivery of Goods between Organizations of the Member Countries of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance to be subject to the provisions of article 90 of the CISG.
The withdrawal of the declarations, which was announced at a special panel discussing current trends of international sale of goods law held during the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law’s 48th annual session in Vienna, Austria, will take effect on 1 February 2016.
The CISG provides an equitable and modern uniform framework for the contract of sale, which is the backbone of international trade in all countries, irrespective of their legal tradition or level of economic development. The CISG is therefore considered to be one of the core conventions in international trade law.
The CISG, which has been adopted by a large number of major trading countries, establishes a comprehensive code of legal rules governing the formation of contracts for the international sale of goods, the obligations of the buyer and seller, remedies for breach of contract and other aspects of the contract. The CISG currently has 83 State Parties. (source: UNIS)
