POSTGRADUATE

DIPLOMA IN
MARITIME LAW
2001 / 2003

MODULE 1
English Commercial Law and the
Inter-Relationship of International
Trade Contracts

AUTHOR
Silas Beckwith
Senior Lecturer in Law
Department of Law
London Guildhall University

CONTENTS

Page No.

1.

ENGLISH COMMERCIAL LAW: ITS ORIGINS AND

CHARACTERISTICS

1.1

What is Commercial Law? .............................................................................. 5

1.2

Historical Development .................................................................................... 5

1.3

Sources of English Commercial Law .............................................................. 6

1.3.1

The Common Law ............................................................................ 7

1.3.2

Trade Custom and Usage ................................................................. 8

1.3.3

National Legislation ........................................................................... 8

1.3.4

EC Law ............................................................................................. 9

1.4

The Codification of English Commercial Law ................................................ 10

1.5

The Relationship between English and Foreign Sales Law ........................... 11

1.5.1

Is Commercial Law International? ................................................ 12

1.5.2

Why English Law? .......................................................................... 12

1.5.3

The International Scene Is an International Lex Mercatoria

Emerging? ....................................................................................... 13

2.

CONTRACTS FOR THE SALE OF GOODS

15

2.1

What is a Contract of Sale? ........................................................................ 15

2.2

Contracts of Sale Distinguished from Other Relationships ........................... 15

2.3

Contractual Negotiations and Certainty ......................................................... 21

2.3.1

Negotiations: Offer and Acceptance ............................................... 21

2.3.2

Negotiations: Incorporation of Pre-contractual Statements ............ 22

2.3.3

Is the Contract Clear? ..................................................................... 22

Postgraduate Diploma in Maritime Law 2001 / 2003

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Contents

2.4

2.5

Module 1

The Subject Matter of the Contract: Types of Goods ..................................... 24

2.4.1

Specific, Ascertained and Unascertained Goods .................... 24

2.4.2

Existing and Future Goods ........................................................ 27

The Passing of Property in Goods ................................................................. 28

2.5.1

Passing of Property in Unascertained Goods ................................. 29

2.5.2

Passing of Property in Specific and Ascertained Goods ................ 31

3.

PERFORMANCE OF THE CONTRACT

38

3.1

Implied Terms................................................................................................. 38
3.1.1

Terms Implied by Fact ..................................................................... 38

3.1.2

Terms Implied by Custom or Trade Usage ..................................... 40

3.1.3

Terms Implied by Law ..................................................................... 40

3.2

The Classification of Contractual Terms and the Right to Repudiate ............ 42

3.3

Duties of the Seller ......................................................................................... 43

3.4

3.3.1

Provision of Certificates .................................................................. 43

3.3.2

Invoices ........................................................................................... 43

3.3.3

Packing ........................................................................................... 44

3.3.4

Sellers Duty to Deliver: Time of Delivery ........................................ 44

3.3.5

Sellers Duty to Deliver: Rules about Delivery ................................ 45

3.3.6

The De Minimis Rule ....................................................................... 46

3.3.7

Instalment Contracts ....................................................................... 47

Duty to Tender Conforming Goods: Terms Implied by SGA 1979 .................. 48

3.4.1

Implied Term to Pass Good Title ..................................................... 48

3.4.2

Implied Term as to Description ........................................................ 48

3.4.3

Implied Terms as to Quality and Fitness for Purpose ..................... 53

3.5

Exclusion of Sellers Liability for Breach of Implied Conditions...................... 58

3.6

Buyers Duty to Take Delivery and Pay Contract Price .................................. 59

3.7

Buyers Duty to Accept the Goods ................................................................. 59

Postgraduate Diploma in Maritime Law 2001 / 2003

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Module 1

Contents

4.

THE CONTRACTUAL MATRIX IN INTERNATIONAL TRADE

61

4.1

The International Sale Contract ...................................................................... 61

4.1.1

Sale Contracts on Shipment Terms.............................................. 61

4.1.2

The Passing of the Risk in the Goods............................................. 62

4.1.3

The Relationship Between the Sale Contract and the Carriage

Contract........................................................................................... 64

4.1.4

The Contract of Carriage ................................................................ 65

Biographical Details .................................................................................................... 69

Further Reading .......................................................................................................... 70
Self-Assessment Questions ....................................................................................... 71
Course Work Assessment Question (Modules 1 and 2) ............................................ 76

Please note, every effort has been made to state

the law as at 1 November 2001

PLEASE NOTE

Learning Questions are provided at the end of each chapter and SelfAssessment Questions are provided at the end of each module. These
questions are designed to help you with your study. They are for your personal
study only; do not send in your answers to these questions as they will not
be assessed. You may raise issues arising from them on the course website
or with the Course Director.

Copyright Silas Beckwith, 2001. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, scanning, recording or by any information storage or retrieval system, without the prior
written permission of the author.

Postgraduate Diploma in Maritime Law 2001 / 2003

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LEARNING OUTCOMES

After successfully completing this module, you will:

recognise the main contracts arising in international trade;

understand that these contracts are co-dependent and together form the matrix of
legal obligations which facilitate trade;

be familiar with the key elements of a contract of sale and appreciate the effect of
Sale of Goods legislation; and

understand the judicial culture of the commercial courts and the doctrine of freedom
of contract.

Postgraduate Diploma in Maritime Law 2001 / 2003

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