Interest under the UN Sales Convention 1980

This article deals with the recovery of interest under the United Nations Convention on the International Sale of Goods 1980. Interest is awarded in two cases: first, where a money sum has fallen due and has not yet been paid (Article 78); and secondly, when the seller has to return the price to the buyer in event of the contract being avoided (Article 84). The documentary history of the Convention the lack of a clear purpose behind the award of interest when payment is overdue. The article claims that interest and damages should be regarded as a composite subject and that interest, when not serving the restitutionary purpose of Article 84, should under Article 78 serve a compensatory purpose. The claimant should be dispensed from proving financial loss up to the amount of a modest investment rate, but, if seeking more, such as borrowing costs, should have to prove a loss. The author expresses scepticism about the award of interest once a damages claim arises and asserts that the subject of interest is firmly regulated by the Convention and is not a matter for national law falling outside its provisions.