Negotiate and sign international contracts online

A contract behind every load - and the paperwork can be instantaneous, thanks to Paction

The International Chamber of Comm erce has launched an e-business tool that provides secure online contracting based on ICC's model international sale contract.

The web-based application enables buyer and seller to prepare, negotiate and complete contracts for the international sale and purchase of goods, always keeping track of every stage of the negotiation and sealing the deal by digital signature.

ICC's partner in the venture is the London-based software development company Allagraf, which came up with the concept and designed the software.

Marketed under the brand name Paction, the application provides the reassurance of online help for business partners every step of the way to contract completion. ICC e-business expert Jonas Astrup said: "Paction will be a boon for small businesses that want to avoid hefty lawyer's fees, to take full advantage of the global market opened up through the Internet, and to be sure that the deal they negotiate is legally sound."

Although especially suited to the small trader, perhaps new to international trade, ICC expects banks and trading companies to be interested in offering Paction as part of their online services to customers. Companies anxious to clinch a deal are free to offer the application to prospective partners as an inducement.

Paction offers something for everyone trading internationally. Larger companies familiar with the complexities of international business can use short cuts through the application to complete a contract with a minimum of hassle.

Mr Astrup said: "Paction preserves all the advantages of correctly-drafted conventional business-to-business sale contracts in terms of reliability and acceptability. It has the backing of ICC's authority and expertise in making the rules for the conduct of trade across borders."

Paction's benefits include:

· The security and authority of ICC's model contracts, which are used worldwide;
· The speed and convenience of dealing over the web, rather than transmitting paper documents;
· Tracking of every phase of the negotiation, with revisions preserved under time and date stamps;
· Ability to sign contracts online, using digital ID;
· Secure storage of contracts.

The application can be found at www.modelcontracts.com

Further information is available from Click here to send a mail, ICC. Telephone + +33 1 49 53 28 26; fax: +33 1 49 53 28 59