International Sales Law (CISG)

VVZ No.: 3970 

The classes will be held in person. Podcasts will be made available after each session. Please also consult OLAT for informations.

This course is designed to introduce students to the theoretical and practical problems of international sales law and the legal solutions served by the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG), which entered into force in 1988 and counts today more than ninetycontracting states. The course focuses mainly on the scope of application of the CISG, the hierarchy between the CISG and national sales law provisions, formation of the contract under the CISG, obligations of the parties and remedies in case of non-performance, and the liability regime of the CISG. The course aims also to use the CISG as a base to discuss different approaches in Civil Law and Common Law jurisdictions, thereby facilitating students with international background to scrutinize their own national sales law system.

Please consult the Syllabus CISG for the preparation of the class.  

CISG Syllabus HS26 (PDF, 268 KB)

• Students should have attended and passed a general contract law course as well as a course serving basic knowledge of national sales law provisions.
• A good command of English is essential.

• Franco Ferrari/Marco Torsello, Elgar Concise Encyclopedia of International Sales Law (CISG), 2026.
• Peter Huber/Alastair Mullis, The CISG, A new textbook for students and practitioners, 2014  (PDF, 1 MB)

• Peter Schlechtriem/Petra Butler, UN Law on International Sales, 2009.

Materials

Swiss Code of Obligation (PDF, 4 MB)

CISG (PDF, 339 KB)

The PPT Presentations will be made available on OLAT.

The examination will be written, will last two hours, and will be held on 17. December 2026 during class hours.

Please make sure to regularly consult the general information on exams at the University of Zurich, which you can find here.