Course 7: Export Legal Considerations

Explain how the law influences all forms of human activity. Differentiate between public international law, national law, and private international law, and discuss how each one influences the activities of those involved in international trade. Explain how public international law and national law are enforced. Explain how private international law can go some way towards helping foreign trading partners resolve disputes in which they may find themselves. Discuss the evolution of commercial law highlighting, in particular, the role of merchant law. Explain how countries with different national laws can nevertheless follow the same legal tradition. With the help of examples, explain the fundamental differences between the western legal tradition and certain non-western legal traditions. Discuss the relative importance of different sources of law to various countries. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the common law system and civil law system.

Understand the part contracts play in commercial transactions. Explain what is meant by ‘right to contract’ or ‘capacity to contract’. Differentiate between an offer, a counteroffer, and the acceptance of an offer. Explain why, to be valid, a contract in its final form must be both ‘legal’ and ‘possible’. Identify additional country-specific conditions that are applicable in the context of contract formation. Identify the various ways in which a contract can be fulfilled or ended. Understand the various ways in which a breach of contract can be resolved and the circumstances in which each would apply. Identify the various contractual relationships that apply to international trade.

Determine the nature and scope of a purchase or sales contract. Utilise best practices when structuring contracts for the international sale of goods. Determine the respective roles played by UNCITRAL and UNIDROIT in the formation of uniform rules for the successful conclusion and execution of international sales contracts. Determine the subject matter of the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sales of Goods. Reference particular articles of the CISG as they relate to the formation of an international sales contract. Identify the duties of the buyer and seller in accordance with the CISG. Determine under which circumstances the CISG convention would apply. Determine the scope of the CISG juxtaposed to a respective country’s national law. Determine the key components of an international sales contract and identify the practical way a contract is concluded in everyday export transactions. Determine the applicability of the CISG as it relates to the trade in intangibles. Determine the various mechanisms available to an exporter for the protection of intellectual property.

Differentiate between distribution and market entry in an export marketing context. Determine an optimal distribution channel for your company’s products in foreign markets. Be able to differentiate between the respective roles of a sales agent and a distributor. Explain how sales agency and distributorship agreements influence the international distribution process. With the support of a legal specialist, be able to draw up an agency agreement. With the support of a legal specialist, be able to draw up a distributorship agreement.