INTRODUCTION

CISG Article 58 is located in the Convention's Part III “Sale of Goods,” Chapter III “Obligations of the Buyer,” Section I “Payment of the Price”; the stated provision governs the time for the buyer's payment of the purchase price in relation to performance by the seller.

In essence, CISG Art. 58 regulates the important matter of when must the buyer pay the price for the purchased goods. There are, however, several related questions concerning payment that are answered in Art. 58: is the seller obliged to hand over the goods before he is paid, how does a contract that calls for carriage of the goods affect the payment of the price against the handing over of the goods, and whether the seller may require the buyer to pay the purchase price before the latter has an opportunity to examine the goods.

The counterpart provisions of the PECL dealing with similar matters are located in the Principles Chapter 7 “Performance,” Articles 7:102 “Time of Performance” and 7:104 “Order of Performance.”

EXCHANGE OF GOODS FOR PRICE: THE PRINCIPLE OF SIMULTANEOUS PAYMENT OF THE PRICE AND HANDING OVER OF THE GOODS (CISG ART. 58(1))

The general rule stated in CISG Art. 58(1), first sentence, is that, subject to a contrary arrangement agreed by the parties to the contract, the buyer is obliged to pay the price at the time the seller makes the goods available to the buyer, by placing either the goods or documents controlling their disposition at the buyer's disposal.