Whither the CISG? Case for Its Acceptance in Nigeria

Abstract

This paper strives to present the numerous benefits of one of the most influential international law conventions- known as The United Nations Conventions on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG); it also tries to make case for the inclusion of this Convention in the Nigeria Legal System. The rationale for this paper is predicated on the hard facts that a country with a supersonic trade volumes like Nigeria needs to have its international sales law reasonably predictable and closely similar to what obtains among the comity of other high profile trading Nations. The CISG has unified 78 countries on the altar of international sale of goods; this is a very healthy development since this aspect of the law has seen better days of uniformity of applications and consistency of decisions.This paper therefore presents the current state of the law in Nigeria, its inadequacy in legislating for international sale of goods matters and the danger in hanging such an important aspect of the Nation’s wealth on the whims and caprices of private international law. This paper also briefly states the mode of applications of the CISG, and will make use of decided cases in driving home the importance of the CISG in dealing with international sale of goods.