What
national laws have to say about documentary credits
 |
| Co-Author Dr Gabriele
Fontane: "National laws on documentary credits are just as important as
the UCP." |
Paris,
21 December 2001 - The first-ever compilation of national laws relating
to documentary credits has just been published - essential reading for practitioners
of this basic tool for financing international trade.
Documentary Credit Law may
be purchased from ICC Publishing, the world business organization's own publishing
arm in Paris, from ICC national committees throughout the world, or ordered
online from the ICC Business Bookstore.
Banks have been applying
ICC's Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits (UCP), the rules
governing letters of credit worldwide, since 1933. The most recent version of
the Rules, known as UCP 500, came into force on 1 January 1994.
Written into virtually every
letter of credit, the UCP are accepted throughout the world to transfer billions
of dollars every year from buyers to sellers in payment for goods and services.
As contractual rules, the
UCP do not cover all issues relating to letters of credit. Key issues left to
the applicable national law include questions concerning the statute of limitations,
force majeure and fraud. Some national laws include provisions that run counter
to the UCP.
This is why a practitioner
needs to know not only the UCP itself, but also relevant national laws, Written
by two lawyers specializing in this field*, Documentary Credit Law is a must
for practitioners, academics, lawyers, bankers and all who deal with letters
of credit. Co-author Dr Gabriele Fontane explains: "National laws on documentary
credits are just as important as the UCP since they apply in addition to the
UCP."
The book recounts the history
of the UCP, and interprets how the various types of credits - deferred payment,
back-to-back, etc. - are used, linking the UCP to court decisions worldwide.
Even countries with no laws
on documentary credits are covered by footnotes citing relevant court decisions
and supporting documents.
*Professor Dr Rolf A Sch&uu
ml;tze
and Dr Gabriele Fontane
Go
to the Business Bookstore to place your order