The letter of credit continues to play an indispensable role in the financing and securing of international commercial transactions. Its usefulness and efficacy derives primarily from the fact that it is independent from the underlying relationship between buyer and seller. In a considerable number of cases, however, the independence of the letter of credit has been challenged as a result of fraud in the underlying transaction. After analyzing recent reforms of the regulatory framework governing letters of credit, this fraud exception to the independence principle will be reappraised in the light of current developments in Canada and the United States. Finally, the author argues that arbitration can and indeed should play an increasingly important role in the resolution of international letter of credit disputes involving fraud in the transaction.

No description available.

This thesis addresses the perceived problems in the utilisation of letters of credit. The jurisdictions treated are: U.K., U.S., the Sudan and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In carrying out this task, it reviews and analyses the arguments advanced to resolve these problems and attempts to furnish some solutions to them. It is divided into ten chapters. Chapter One explains the nature of the letter of credit transaction and its efficacy as a financial device, then proceeds to identify the problems which will be examined in the thesis. Chapter Two focuses on the development of letters of credit from ancient times and the factors that contributed to their emergence in their present form. Chapter Three deals with classification of letters of credit. It investigates problem areas surrounding some types of credits particularly the irrevocable credit. Chapter Four examines the documents required under the credit; highlights the legal and technical aspects of these documents; argues and offers suggestions as to disputed issues such as notation on a bill of lading, customary disclaimers and additional cost clauses etc. Chapter Five examines the problems relating to interpretation of the strict compliance rule. It examines the controversy the strict compliance rule has spawned among commentators and offers practical solutions which may minimize the practical difficulties involved. Chapter Six considers the problem of fraud in letters of credit transactions. It identifies the bounds of the fraud exceptions in documentary letters of credit and standby letters of credits, analyses the rationale behind the fraud exception and offers suggestions as to allocation of loss when innocent parties are evenly situated. Chapter Seven deals with problem areas in letter of credit transfer and assignment. It reviews modes of transfer, provides a discussion of the mechanism of transfer, offers an analysis as to the banker's obligation; investigates and challenges the current reservations against credit transferability; examines the fundamental issues involved in assignment of proceeds of the credit and offers an overview of al-hawala <i>i.e.</i> transfer of a debt under Islamic law. Chapter eight deals with the bankers' security over the goods. It illustrates forms of documents of title, the security devices utilised by bankers such as the pledge, the letter of hypothecation and the trust receipt, and examines the position of the banker <i>vis a vis</i> third parties. Complex priority problems are discussed and some solutions are offered to maintain the predominant security interest of the banker against other rival claimants in case of the debtor's insolvency. Chapter Nine focuses on Islamic Law concepts fundamental to understanding why Islamic banks' operations as to documentary credits differ from conventional banks. Islamic law theories of riba <i>i.e.</i> interest and gharar <i>i.e.</i> risk or uncertainty are briefly dealt with. Chapter Ten examines the al-murabaha device which is utilised by Islamic banks to finance documentary credits. The practical issues are reviewed and analysed, namely how Islamic banks deal in foreign exchange transactions, discounting of bills of exchange, confirmations of credits and service charges. It suggests particular areas where cooperation between the two types of banks may be developed.

No description available.

Thesis (J.D.)--Columbia University, 1930. / Vita. Published also without thesis note. "Table of cases": p. 335-359.

Thesis (J.D.)--Columbia University, 1930. / Vita. Published also without thesis note. "Table of cases": p. 335-359.

No description available.

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong. / Bibliography: p. 60-61.

Magister Legum - LLM

It is a well-known fact that international trade contracts bear inherently more risk than the trade contracts entered by the parties from the same country. This is due to the differences in business methods and practices used, trade cultures of the parties involved, laws and regulations in the respective jurisdictions. Under these circumstances, it is very important for the seller to have the assurance of that he receives the payment for the goods dispatched and for the buyer to receive the goods what has been ordered. One effective way of having such an assurance is to rely on a letter of credit as an international payment method. But for exporters in particular, this payment method has presented difficulties in meeting the compliance requirements necessary for the payment to be triggered. The UCP 600 published by the International Chamber of Commerce provide the rules that govern letters of credit transactions. At the introduction of the UCP 600, it was aimed to remove wording that could lead to inconsistent application and interpretation, as against the language and style used in the previous version, namely the UCP 500. Highlighting the experiences under UCP 500, the ultimate focus of the revision of the UCP was to minimise the level of litigations that had arisen under the rules provided in the UCP. In several surveys, it has been reported that, nearly 50% of the first presentation for payment under letters of credit are rejected by the banks. This situation implies the fact that the provisions which cover letters of credit transactions are not either clear enough or well understood by the parties involved. Similarly, the decisions made by Courts around the world on issues related to letters of credit have taken different approaches when applying and interpreting the rules. This can clearly be seen by a myriad of controversial judicial standards which have been applied to similar mistakes in documents presented to the bank for payment. This thesis is an investigation into those issues to find out the optimal standards that could be applied to solve the said problems. In doing so, this thesis will strive to ascertain what remedial measures could be taken to address the issues related to examination of documents, the rejection of payment and fraud exception. Key words: International Trade, International Trade Law, Law of Letters of Credit, Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credit 600, Examination of Documents and communicating the decision.