The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law launched a case-reporting system in May. Under this system the Commission will collect decisions by courts and arbitral tribunals that construe UNCITRAL texts, including the 1985 Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration. Periodically the Commission will then publish abstracts of these decisions. The system has been dubbed "CLOUT" (Case Law On Uncitral Texts).

A first compilation of abstracts appeared in May. The compilation included twelve abstracts of decisions construing the Model Arbitration Law. All but one report on Canadian court decisions; the twelfth summarizes an opinion of the High Court in Hong Kong. A majority of the opinions themselves can be found in published court reports, but several abstracts summarize unreported cases. On request -- and for a fee -- the UNCITRAL Secretariat will supply copies of the full opinion.

To identify relevant decisions, the Commission has established a network of "National Correspondents." Countries that are parties to an UNCITRAL text are invited to designate a national correspondent. Most countries have done so, although the Netherlands and Hungary are notable exceptions. The present national correspondents range from Ministry of Justice officials to law professors.

The U.S. national correspondents are Professor John O. Honnold of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and the author of this column.

Each national correspondent is to identify relevant cases decided in his or her jurisdiction. Having identified a decision, the correspondent obtains a copy of the opinion and prepares an abstract. After completing the abstract, the correspondent sends the opinion and abstract to the UNCITRAL Secretariat in Vienna. Translators at the United Nations will then translate the abstract, but not the opinion, into the six official U.N. languages.

A typical abstract follows an agreed format. It will identify the UNCITRAL text and relevant articles of the text construed by the court or arbitral tribunal. It will then give the name of the court or tribunal, the date of the decision, and the names of the parties. Where the opinion or a case comment has been published, citations are given. The opinion itself is then summarized in two or three short paragraphs.

Not unexpectedly, the May abstracts of the 12 Model Law decisions cluster around several issues. Many of the decisions consider article 8, which directs courts to refer cases to arbitration when the parties have agreed upon an enforceable arbitration clause. Several address the competence of an arbitral tribunal to rule on its own jurisdiction (art. 16). Several also wrestle with when a court may set aside an award (art. 34).