ICC Digital Library Forum

T.O.

I have not suggested that the contract be withdrawn. No contract exists in perpetuity. As before, I consider the contract only to be established upon performance by the bene. This total or partial performance is his acceptance of the offer. Thus it is a conditional contract. Some of the conditions are obvious : if it is a revocable DC, the term of validity of the (DC) contract is determined in two ways - expiry date & cancellation. Some of the conditions are not so obvious : If partial shipment is allowed, this not only permits goods to the total value of the L/C to be part-shipped, but also permits the beneficiary to ship only a partial value of the L/C and stop there. He cannot be sued for breach of contract under the L/C for failing to ship the remainder, although he may be so sued under the underlying contract he has with the applicant.

My apologies for the delay in replying caused by my "earning my bacon".

Laurence
[edited 3/15/02 11:16:21 AM]

Laurence,

I am now back from Hong Kong.

From our understanding of your further explanation, a DC is merely an offer and not a "conditional contract" as you have named it. A "conditional contract" is not a contract until it has been accepted, by presentation of documents after shipment performance.

We find your "conditional contract" concept a bit mechanical. We do not see this term in law of contract. Would you enlighten us with the origin of this term.

By your name, we assume that you can never be a vegetarian.

www.tolee.com

[edited 3/18/02 8:58:20 PM]

T.O.

In an earlier posting, I suggested that "contract law is the "best fit" option to DCs."

In most contracts, acceptance of an offer may be indicated by supply or despatch of the goods in question. This is not so in DC cases, where acceptance is indicated by presentation of the relevant documents. Thus it is conditional upon that presentation. Unless there is recorded agreement between the parties involved in a contract, an offer linked to such contract remains conditional upon acceptance, period of validity etc. In non-DC contracts, acceptance may be made by written agreement which indicates the parameters by which performance of the contract is indicated. Upon agreement between these parties, the contract is binding. The DC differs in that the bene may decide not to present documents against such DC. If he does, he is not in breach of the contract, but if he does present, the bank does not have a similar option to avoid the contract. This is part of what I meant by a conditional contract. I am not making reference to a particular legal tome, but, as I suggested earlier, this is the nearest fit.

"Earning your bacon" is an expression which means earning your salary. As it happens, I am not a veggie, but one of my daughters is.

Laurence