Non-legislative means of the unification of contract law in international trade

The UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts as well as the Principles of European Contract Law provide non-binding, uniform rules. The Principles draw inspiration from national and international legislation as well as from non-legislative instruments. They contain innovative solutions to problems arising from the needs of international trade practice. The Principles are destined not only to serve as a model for national and international legislators, but also to constitute a means of interpreting and supplementing existing international in­struments. Moreover, the may function as a guide for the drafting of international commercial contracts. Finally, the Principles could be considered a comprahensive system rules of contract law to which the parties themselves, or, in case of dis­pute, arbitrators may refer as the rules of law governing the contract. However the Principles may fulfill the latter purpose only if the traditional approach of "localizing" all international contracts within the framework of a single national legal system gives way to a more flexible approach.