Case number: 201
Article number: sales convention / 1(1)(b); 3

Thessaurs issue:
Country of decision: Switzerland
Year of decision: 1993
Type of decision: Judicial decision




Case 201: CISG 1(1)(b); 3

Switzerland: Richteramt Laufen des Kantons Berne
7 May 1993
Original in German
Unpublished
Abstract published in German in Schweizerische Zeitschrift für Internationales und Europäisches Recht 277 [1995]; in Italian in 70 Diritto Commerciale Internationale 451 [1995];
in English in UNILEX, D.93-15 [1995/II]




The Finnish plaintiff, a producer of automatic storage systems, concluded, with a Swiss defendant, a metal-works company, a number of agreements, such as a non-disclosure agreement, a licence agreement and various contracts, for the supply of goods to be manufactured on or after 1988. In 1992, the plaintiff sued the defendant for the outstanding balance of the purchase price on several of those agreements.





The court found that the parties had entered into contracts for the supply of goods to be manufactured and thus they were to be considered sales under article 3(1) CISG since, although the plaintiff had to furnish a number of different services, these obligations were not preponderant (article 3(2) CISG). Therefore, the court held that the Convention was applicable pursuant to article 1(1)(b) CISG. However, the court stated that, according to Swiss procedural law, it did not have subject-matter jurisdiction and, therefore, dismissed the claim.