Sixth Committee (Legal) — 76th session
Report of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law on the work of its fifty-fourth session (Agenda item 80)
- Authority: resolution 75/133
Documentation
- A/76/17 — Report of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law on the work of its fifty-fourth session
- A/C.6/76/L.3 — Draft resolution "Mediation Rules of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law"
- A/C.6/76/L.4 — Draft resolution "Expedited Arbitration Rules of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law"
- A/C.6/76/L.5 — Draft resolution "Enlargement of the membership of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law"
- A/C.6/76/L.10 — Draft resolution "Report of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law on the work of its fifty-fourth session"
- A/C.6/76/L.18 — Statement on the programme budget implications of draft resolution A/C.6/76/L.10
Summary of work
Background (source: A/76/100)
At its twenty-first session, the General Assembly established the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) to promote the progressive harmonization and unification of the law of international trade, and requested the Commission to submit an annual report to the Assembly (resolution 2205 (XXI)). The Commission began its work in 1968. It originally consisted of 29 Member States representing the various geographic regions and the principal legal systems of the world. At its twenty-eighth and fifty-seventh sessions, respectively, the Assembly increased the membership of the Commission from 29 to 36 States (resolution 3108 (XXVIII)) and from 36 to 60 States (resolution 57/20). For the current composition of the Commission, see decision 73/412.
The Assembly had on its agenda the item entitled “Report of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law” annually from the twenty-third to the forty-first sessions and has had the item entitled “Report of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law on the work of its … session” annually since its forty-second session (resolutions 2421 (XXIII), 2502 (XXIV), 2635 (XXV), 2766 (XXVI), 2928 (XXVII), 3104 (XXVIII), 3108 (XXVIII), 3316 (XXIX), 3494 (XXX), 31/98 to 31/100, 32/145, 33/92, 33/93, 34/142, 34/143, 35/51, 35/52, 36/32, 37/106, 37/107, 38/134, 38/135, 39/82, 40/71, 40/72, 41/77, 42/152, 42/153, 43/165 (United Nations Convention on International Bills of Exchange and International Promissory Notes), 43/166, 44/33, 45/42, 46/56 A and B, 47/34, 48/32 to 48/34, 49/54, 49/55, 50/47, 50/48 (United Nations Convention on Independent Guarantees and Stand-by Letters of Credit), 51/161, 51/162 (Model Law on Electronic Commerce adopted by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law), 52/157, 52/158 (Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law), 53/103, 54/103, 55/151, 56/79, 56/80, 56/81 (United Nations Convention on the Assignment of Receivables in International Trade), 57/17, 57/18 (Model Law on International Commercial Conciliation of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law), 57/19, 57/20, 58/75, 58/76, 59/39, 59/40, 60/20, 60/21 (United Nations Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Contracts), 61/32, 61/33, 62/64, 62/65, 63/120, 63/121, 63/122 (United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Carriage of Goods Wholly or Partly by Sea), 64/111, 64/112, 65/21 to 65/24, 66/94 to 66/96, 67/89, 67/90, 68/106 to 68/109, 69/115, 69/116 (United Nations Convention on Transparency in Treaty-based Investor-State Arbitration), 70/115, 71/135 to 71/138, 72/113, 72/114, 73/197 to 73/200, 74/182 to 74/184 and 75/133).
At its seventy-fifth session, the Assembly allocated the item to the Sixth Committee, where statements in the debate were made by the Chair of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law and by 25 delegations (see A/C.6/75/SR.15 and 19). The Assembly took note with interest of the progress made by the Commission in its work in several areas and noted with interest the decisions taken by the Commission on its future work (resolution 75/133).
Consideration at the seventy-sixth session
The Sixth Committee considered the item at its 11th, 12th, 26th, 27th and 29th meetings, on 18 October and 4, 9 and 18 November 2021. The views of the representatives who spoke during the Committee’s consideration of the item are reflected in the relevant summary records (See A/C.6/76/SR.11, 12, 26, 27 and 29).
The Chair of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law at its fifty-fourth session introduced the report of the Commission (A/76/17).
Statements were made by the representatives of the European Union (also on behalf of its member States (the candidate countries of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Albania, the country of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidate Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Georgia, aligned themselves with the statement)), Finland (on behalf of the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden)), Singapore, Honduras, Sierra Leone, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Philippines, Egypt, Belarus, Colombia, the United States of America, Italy, El Salvador, Ghana, Chile, Peru, Japan, India, Cameroon, Sri Lanka, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Israel, Belgium, Thailand, Austria, the Russian Federation, Argentina, China, Algeria, the Republic of Korea, Pakistan, Canada [in English] and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
Delegations generally expressed support for the work of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law and commended it for the progress made at its fifty-fourth section. The importance of the Commission’s role in the harmonization and progressive development of international trade law was emphasized and the relevance of its work to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals was highlighted. In particular, the finalization, of the UNCITRAL Mediation Rules, the UNCITRAL Notes on Mediation and the Guide to Enactment and Use of the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Mediation and International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation, as well as of the UNCITRAL Expedited Arbitration Rules and the new article 1, paragraph 5, of the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules, was welcomed. Delegations also commended the Commission on the completion of the UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on Limited Liability Enterprises and the Legislative Recommendations on Insolvency of Micro- and Small Enterprises.
Delegations welcomed the continued efforts of the Commission and its secretariat to adapt to the challenges arising from the COVID-19 pandemic and ensure the continuity of work. Several delegations expressed their support for the exploratory work by the Secretariat on the impact of COVID-19 on international trade law. Appreciation was expressed for the continued use of virtual formats to raise awareness of the Commission’s work. The importance of an eventual return to in-person working methods for inclusiveness and the quality of the Commission’s output was noted.
In relation to future work, many delegations highlighted their interest in aspects of the work of the working groups. Concerning Working Group I, a number of delegations welcomed the work on access to credit for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. With respect to Working Group II, several delegations emphasized the work on early dismissal and adjudication. Concerning Working Group III, a number of delegations welcomed progress in the work on possible reform of investor-State dispute settlement. Some delegations highlighted the importance that the Working Group proceed in a transparent and inclusive manner. Several delegations expressed support for the proposal to provide increased resources for Working Group III, subject to periodic review of the efficiency of the working group. Regarding Working Group IV, a number of delegations expressed appreciation for progress on the work on cross-border identity management and trust services. With respect to Working Group V, a number of delegations expressed appreciation for progress in the work on civil asset tracing and interest in future work on applicable law in insolvency proceedings. Additionally, several delegations welcomed the work of Working Group VI to develop an international instrument relating to the judicial sale of ships.
Finally, several delegations expressed support for the recommendation of the Commission to expand its membership to 70 States. In this respect, a number of delegations emphasized the importance of the equitable geographical distribution of members.
Archived videos and summaries of plenary meetings
11th meeting (18 October 2021, 10:00am – 1:00pm) | Summary
12th meeting (18 October 2021, 3:00pm – 6:00pm) | Summary
26th meeting (4 November 2021, 10:00am – 1:00pm) | Summary
27th meeting (9 November 2021, 3:00pm – 6:00pm) | Summary
29th meeting (18 November 2021, 10:00am – 1:00pm) | Summary
Action taken by the Sixth Committee
At the 26th meeting, on 4 November 2021, the representative of Austria, on behalf of the Bureau, introduced three draft resolutions, entitled “Mediation Rules of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law” (A/C.6/76/L.3), “Expedited Arbitration Rules of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law” (A/C.6/76/L.4) and “Enlargement of the membership of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law” (A/C.6/76/L.5).
At the 27th meeting, on 9 November 2021, the Committee adopted the three draft resolutions (A/C.6/76/L.3, A/C.6/76/L.4 and A/C.6/76/L.5) without a vote.
At the 29th meeting, on 18 November 2021, the representative of Austria, on behalf of a number of sponsors (see A/76/471), introduced a further draft resolution entitled “Report of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law on the work of its fifty-fourth session” (A/C.6/76/L.10).
At the same meeting, the Committee adopted draft resolution A/C.6/76/L.10 without a vote.
Under the terms of draft resolution A/C.6/76/L.10, the General Assembly would, inter alia, take note with interest of the decisions taken by the Commission as regards its future work and the progress made by the Commission in its work in several areas and of the decisions taken by the Commission as regards its future work. The Assembly would also decide to allocate one additional one-week session per year for a single period from 2022 to 2025 and additional support to the Commission to allow its Working Group III to continue to implement its work with respect to investor-State dispute settlement reform, on the condition that the Commission would during its annual session re-evaluate and, if needed, revisit its decision concerning the need for allocating an additional one-week session to Working Group III and related support based on its annual report on the use of its resources.
Under the terms of draft resolutions A/C.6/76/L.3 and A/C.6/76/L.4 relating, respectively, to the UNCITRAL Mediation Rules and the UNCITRAL Expedited Arbitration Rules, the General Assembly would, inter alia, recommend the use of the UNICTRAL Mediation Rules and the UNCITRAL Expedited Arbitration Rules, respectively, in the settlement of disputes arising in the context of international commercial relations.
Under the terms of draft resolution A/C.6/76/L.5, the General Assembly would, inter alia, decide to increase the membership of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law from 60 to 70 States, bearing in mind that the Commission is a technical body; the regional representation resulting from this increase in membership would not be a precedent for the enlargement of other bodies in the United Nations system.
Subsequent action taken by the General Assembly
This agenda item will thus be considered at the seventy-seventh session (2022).
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