International Trade & Commodities
For a number of years we have represented large German and international trading companies which deal with the international trade of goods and raw materials, and which are amongst the market leaders in this field. We act on behalf of one of the largest German manufacturers and traders of steel and iron products, the largest European scrap dealer and one of the biggest European sugar traders. We also have well-established experience in the trading of oil, gas, coal, animal feed, grain, coffee and cocoa as well as international trading with industrial equipment and project cargo. In all of these areas this often involves a long chain of overseas sale contracts which must be coordinated with documents of credit, freight contracts, insurance contracts and financing contracts. We advise our clients on the drafting of all of these contracts in the context of both imports and exports and under German or international law, such as the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods.
In the event of disputes such as warranty claims, insolvency within the contractual chain or delay with delivery, we represent our clients before the competent courts as well as arbitration tribunals which are often agreed in this field. This could be an institutional arbitration court such as the ICC, LCIA and DIS, or arbitration courts established for particular areas (GAFTA, FOSFA, RSA, SAL, FCC, Hamburger Freundschaftliche Arbitrage, Warenverein Hamburger Börse etc.).
Our expertise includes in particular:
- overseas sale contracts
- credit documentation
- trade financing
- UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods
- ICC INCOTERMS (FOB, CIF, C&F etc.)
- effects of trading limitations (Iran-boycott for example)
- arbitration proceedings