The lex mercatoria and its application in the contemporary world

Abstract

This article addresses the problem regarding the regulation of international private trade relations. The lack of a single and higher regulator places those relations in a situation of uncertainty and insecurity when facing conflicts originated by either the execution or not of contracts. The application of the international laws in conflicts of a private nature jeopardizes the dynamics of international trade not only by the slowness in the assessment of the conflict by national States, but mainly by the lack of technical knowledge by the body state judge since it is unaware to market realities. The search for viable alternatives that can resolve such a limitation directed the merchant class to the model of international law grounded in the habits and customs of the Middle Age merchants, known as lex mercatoria, which, from the adaptation of it's principles to modern times, has been acquiring strength and space in international commerce. The matter concerning the confrontation between the lex mercatoria and national law encourages various theoretical discussions, being recommended to the scholar of international trade law a deeper study of the theme. Before the minor national academic research involving the issue, it intellectually contributes to the debate of the subject in Brazil, as it condenses the ideas of many scholars.