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Gary
Collyer and Graham
Christiansen at the eUCP Seminar |
ICC’s
new electronic supplement to the UCP,
called eUCP, came into force at the
beginning of April 2002. Taking account
of the trend towards electronic credits,
the eUCP applies in situations where
there are electronic, or part-electronic,
presentations in letter of credit transactions.
The application of the new eUCP rules
was reviewed at a half-day seminar on
26 June. The programme offered delegates
an overview of the eUCP, insights into
the practical application of the rules
and their relationship to the UCP, as
well as a review of the potential legal
implications. Members of the Panel were:
Neil Chantry (HSBC), a member of the
eUCP Working Party; Gary Collyer (ABN
Amro), Technical Adviser to the ICC
Banking Commission; and Sunil Gadhia
(Stephenson Harwood), a legal expert
on letters of credit.
John Turnbull (Sumitomo Mitsui Banking
Corporation) chaired the event, which
proved very popular. Our second banking
event in 2002 looked at legal issues
in the area of letters of credit. During
recent years, a number of high profile
cases concerning documentary credits
have come before the courts and their
decisions have often confirmed the current
practice of bankers and practitioners.
However, there have also been instances
when this had not been the case. This
half-day seminar on 11 July gave a clear
assessment of the legal position on
many issues that are intrinsic to the
business of documentary credits. The
expert speakers, who were closely involved
with the cases in question, provided
an incisive and practical analysis of
the current position. Once again, the
seminar was chaired by John Turnbull,
who was joined on the Panel by Nick
Archer (Slaughter and May), John Higham
QC (Stephenson Harwood) and Stephen
Tricks (Clyde & Co).
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Stephen
Tricks at the
Letters of Credit Seminar |
Our
third and final banking event in 2002
was our Annual Banking Seminar, which
took place in December. Also chaired
by John Turnbull, the programme covered
the latest letter of credit developments
and took an informed look at what the
future could hold. There were specific
sessions on legal issues, e-commerce
in international trade finance, fraud,
some specific issues relating to Article
1 and Article 19 of the UCP, the new
ICC International Standard Banking Practice,
and the outcome of a recent and very
important court case. Other speakers
at the event were Gary Collyer, Sunil
Gadhia, Richard Hooley (Fitzwilliam
College, Cambridge), Jeremy Smith (Lloyds
TSB Bank plc) and Graham Sylvester-Evans
(Citibank E-Business). As usual, there
was an excellent turnout. Combatting
corruption is one of the important new
issues at the top of every boardroom
agenda. To reflect this, ICC United
Kingdom joined forces with new UK member
Control Risks Group to run a seminar
on Facing up to Corruption: A Practical
Approach. The event, which took place
in October, focused on maintaining integrity
and winning business within the new
global anti-corruption
The world business organisation regime.
It was chaired by Sir Graham Burton
KCMG (Control Risks Group) and members
of the panel were: John Bray (Control
Risks Group), Jeremy Carver (Clifford
Chance), Toby Latta (Control Risks Group)
and Rodney Whittaker (GlaxoSmithKline).
The event was aimed at business development
directors, financial directors, corporate
counsel, company secretaries and all
executives who operate in complex emerging
markets, and there was an excellent
attendance.
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Professor
Sir Roy Goode CBE at the URDG
458 Seminar |
The
use of demand guarantees has grown considerably
over recent years. These instruments
play an important part in the conduct
of international trade but their use
brings with it risks of loss occasioned
by documentary errors, uncertainty,
fraud and unfair calling. On 28 October,
ICC United Kingdom held a seminar to
examine the risks that can arise in
the operation of demand guarantees and
the role that the ICC Uniform Rules
for Demand Guarantees (URDG 458) can
play in mitigating those costs. This
was ICC UK’s first seminar on
the URDG 458 since 1995 and the rules
have recently been gaining ground: the
International Federation of Consulting
Engineers (FIDIC) has incorporated URDG
458 into its Model Guarantee Forms;
the UN Commission on International Trade
Law (UNCITRAL) has granted its “blue
seal” to the rules; and the World
Bank has decided to incorporate them
into all its Model Unconditional Guarantee
Forms. The speakers at the seminar were
Dr Georges Affaki (BNP Paribas), a leading
world expert on the URDG 458; Professor
Sir Roy Goode (Oxford University), who
brought the rules to a successful conclusion
in 1992; Jeremy Smith (Lloyds TSB);
and Keith White (The Crown Agents),
who chaired the seminar and who also
chairs the ICC UK Committee on Commercial
Law & Practice. |
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