Battle of Forms, United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG), Conflicting Contract Terms, International Sale, International Trade Law, Vienna Sale Convention

In the realm of commercial trade, it is a common practice that sellers and buyers manifest their intentions to conclude the contract of sale through different communications and correspondence. The parties may exchange forms and general terms prepared invariably in advance for all contracts. There may be a conflict between the buyer’s and the seller’s forms. Thus, when a dispute arises between the parties, the main question is whether a contract has been concluded, even though there are conflicting terms. If the answer is positive, a further question is: What are the terms of this contract? By considering circumstances and conduct of the parties, on the whole, after the exchange of the forms, it can be said that there is a valid contract. A viable solution is to disregard the conflicting terms, and instead, to consider provisions of the law governing the contract. When CISG is the law applicable to the sale contract, its provisions may well be used to fill the gaps after conflicting terms are ruled out.