Analyse the compromises made in the Vienna Convention between common Essay

Analyse the compromises made in the Vienna Convention between common law and civil law approaches to contract formation - Essay Example Many of the principles of international mercantile law were derived from the early rules and traditions formulated in the Middle Ages.2 However, with regard to the unification of laws and the harmonization of principles that govern transnational commerce and in particular, the international sale of goods, serious efforts were undertaken only in the 1930s. The first draft of a uniform law on international sale of goods was developed in 1935, World political events intervened - in particular, the Second World War - and it was only in 1964 when two conventions were approved in a conference at The Hague. These conventions were the Uniform Law on the International Sale of Goods ("ULIS") and the Uniform Law on the Formation of Contracts for the International Sale of Goods ("ULF"). Unfortuna... Many states were not comfortable with the influence of the civil law traditions of Western Europe3 . The failure of these two conventions made one conclusion inescapable: to achieve uniformity and harmonization of the principles governing the international sale of goods, there must be widespread concurrence from a vast majority of state-actors.4 The road towards a unified law was long and arduous. Two years after the conferences at the Hague, the United Nations established the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). However, it took ten years before the UNCITRAL released the 1978 Draft Convention. Perhaps the circumstances were a little different than they were in 1968, and there was a growing realization of the imperative to come up with rules that harmonize international trade law. In 1980, 62 countries came together in a conference in Vienna and, after some debate, approved unanimously the Convention on the International Sale of Goods (CISG). In 1988, the CISG finally came into force. The prefatory statement of the CISG illuminates us as to the overarching goals of the Convention: ''THE STATES PARTIES TO THIS CONVENTION, BEARING IN MIND the broad objectives in the resolution adopted by the sixth special session of the General Assembly of the United Nations on the establishment of a New International Economic Order, CONSIDERING that the development of international trade on the basis of equality and mutual benefit is an important element in promoting friendly relations among States, BEING OF THE OPINION that the adoption of uniform rules which govern contracts for the international sale of goods and take

James Rachels The Challenge of Cultural Relativism Article

James Rachels The Challenge of Cultural Relativism - Article Example The cultural outcomes can be argued using facts about a particular culture, creating an argument that has an end result. But the argument itself is relative because it focuses on each culture has its own moral code which is not objective because opinions are formed based on experience and opinions are in themselves subjective and subject to different cultures. Rachels argues that cultural relativism has three unacceptable consequences. What are they? Rachels argues that cultural relativism has three unacceptable consequences and they are that we can’t feel superior to a different culture, we can question the moral conduct of our culture upfront by asking whether one thing is right, or wrong and then stick to that response and risked being looked down upon and finally, we begin to doubt whether progress is possible, necessary, and even important through venues such as social reform.1. What does Kant mean by saying that a good will is the only thing that is good without qualification? He means that a good will is the only thing that can’t be measured by how much one does or does not do. Intelligence, talent, courage, and diligence are all good things but are useless unless you have good character or will. If you have a positive desire to do and use your talents, they what you produce will be out of good, and not used incorrectl y. We are all given power, and this power can be put to good use or bad use but it is still power. A goodwill allows the power to be put essentially to good use. When does an action have moral worth? An action has moral worth when it is done for the sake of duty and not for the sake of conforming to duty. This means that if we do something, we should do it for the sake of duty or right.not for the sake of sympathy.