Is it Wise, and is it still Properly Defensible to Continue to Exclude this Vienna Convention Blindly, Merely Because we are More Comfortable Using our National Law?                                       

In our practice as specialists in international sales under the Vienna Convention, my colleagues and I have observed with dismay that many of our colleagues rule out the use of one of the most harmonised instruments at present, for the sole reason, in reality, that they are not proficient in its application and/or that they feel considerably more comfortable using their national law. This is despite the fact that the main advantage of the CISG is to provide common, balanced language for international sales, through which each stakeholder, regardless of his/her country, can understand and ascertain the legal and economic position of his/her partner. This overly/excessively frequent exclusion of the CISG is moreover not without risks: some courts are now prepared to penalise lawyers who may have advised their clients to exclude the CISG, on the grounds that, in light of the circumstances, this was a breach of their duty to advise.