The "Noble Month" : the Story Behind the Scenery

According to Article 39(1) CISG, the buyer loses the right to rely on a lack of conformity of the goods if it does not give notice to the seller specifying the nature of the lack of conformity within a reasonable time after it has discovered it or ought to have discovered it. Case law on how to interpret the question of what period is reasonable in the sense of Article 39(1) CISG is abundant, especially in German speaking countries. As can be expected, divergent interpretations are endangering the uniform application of the CISG. However, at the Conference, "25 Years United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG)", held in Vienna on 15-16 March 2005, the reporter on Article 39 CISG came to the conclusion that the analysis of case law regarding the period within which the buyer has to give notice of any non-conformity of the goods shows "a cautious convergence in the direction of the 'noble month'". This, in return, prompted some common law representatives to react, for whom such a pre-determined period seemed utterly unacceptable. This article will outline the background to the "noble month" period and try to offer solutions which both civil law and common law lawyers will find agreeable.