First UN Convention on eCommerce finalised

The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) has finalised its Convention on electronic contracting following over three years of deliberations. The Convention has been formally titled the Convention on the use of electronic communications in international contracts. It will be presented at the UN General Assembly meeting in late 2005, where if adopted it will become the first UN Convention addressing legal issues created by the digital environment. This paper analyses the content of the Convention and questions whether the flexibility offered to member states to alter the application through declarations made when signing the Convention may act as a barrier to harmonisation, creating the potential for a regime of varying and multitudinous exemptions.