United States: Legal environment

In this page: Business Contract | Intellectual Property | Legal Framework of Business | International Dispute Resolution

Business Contract

General Observation: You must define precisely the seller's obligations and the methods of quality control.
Law Applicable to the Contract: Article 1 (General Provisions), Article 2 (Sales) of The Uniform Commercial Code and Article 9 (Secured Transactions).
Advisable Incoterms: Choose an incoterm FOB (Free On Board) or CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight). Avoid EXW (Ex works), if you don't want to have to take care of the transport. Visit the website Foreign Trade to see all the incoterms.
Language of Domestic Contract: English
Other Laws Which Can Be Used in Domestic Contracts: American Law: State Level.

Intellectual Property

National Organisations: United States Patent and Trademark Office and the U.S. Copyright Office
Regional Organisations: UNECA (UN Economic Commission for Africa)
APEC (Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation)
UNECE (UN Economic Commission for Europe)
ECLAC (UN Ecomomic Commission for Latin America & the Caribean)
ESCWA (UN Ecomomic and Social Commission for Western Asia)
International Membership: Member of the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization)
Signatory to the Paris Convention For the Protection of Intellectual Property
Membership to the TRIPS agreement - Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)

National Regulation and International Agreements

Type of property and law	Validity	International Agreements Signed
Patent United States Code Title 35	20 years	Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)
Trademark U.S. trademark law	20 years, renewed for periods of ten years, unless previously cancelled or surrendered.	Trademark Law Treaty Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks
Design Industrial Designs	15 years
Copyright Copyright Law	During the life of the author, plus an additional 50 or 70 years	Berne convention For the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works Convention for the Protection of Producers of Phonograms Against Unauthorized Duplication of Their Phonograms Rome ConventionFor the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations WIPO Copyright Treaty WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty
Industrial Models United States Code Title 35	Indefinite

Legal Framework of Business

Equity of Judgments

Equal Treatment of Nationals and Foreigners: Foreign nationals can expect an impartial trial from the judicial system.
The Language of Justice: English
Recourse to an Interpreter: Each federal court is required to provide, at the judiciary's expense, a certified or otherwise qualified interpreter in judicial proceedings instituted by the United States for a party who speaks only or primarily a language other than English.
Legal Similarities: The main source of the law is the Constitution of 1787. The country's legal system is based on a federal court system. It has been influenced by English Common Law, as well as judicial reviews of various legislative acts. Each state has its own unique legal system with its own supreme court. A case may be appealed from a state supreme court to the federal Supreme Court only if it is related to federal issues, such as the U.S. Constitution or laws/treaties of the United States.

The Different Legal Codes

Contract and property law	Title 9 Arbitration Title 35 Patents Title 17 Copyrights
Customs law	Title 19 Customs Duties
Company law	Title 15 Commerce and Trade Title 11 Bankruptcy Title 28 Judiciary and Judicial Procedure
Investment law	Title 31 Money and Finance Title 12 Banks and Banking
Labor law	Title 29 Labor Title 5 Government Organization and Employees

Checking National Laws Online: Office of the Law Revision Council
Other Useful Resources: Caselaw, Find Law
Country Guides: U.S. Courts
USA Find Law

The Jurisdictions

The U.S Supreme Courts	Its jurisdiction is set out by statute in Title 28 of the U.S. Code. Most of the time the Supreme Court is judicial review. While the Supreme Court is a separate branch of government, outside factors do exert some influence on the Court. For further information, consult the US Constitution
U.S Federal Court of Appeals (13)	When cases are appealed from district courts. Consult the website of the U.S Federal Court of Appeals
U.S Federal District Courts (94)	Consult the website of the US Courts
State Courts	Consult the website of the US Courts
The Court of Federal Claims	The Court of Federal Claims hears cases in which the U.S. Government is sued.
The Court of Military Appeals	More information
The Court of International Trade	The Court of International Trade hears cases involving appeals of rulings of U.S. Customs offices.

Court Officials

Chief Justice of the United States: The head of the judicial branch of the government of the United States, nominated by the US president.
U.S Attorneys: Represent the United States federal government in USA district court and USA court of appeals.
US Judges: Judges of the courts of appeals and the district courts, and judges of the Court of International Trade, are appointed for life under Article III of the Constitution by the President of the United States with the advice and consent of the Senate. Bankruptcy judges are judicial officers of the district courts and are appointed by the courts of appeals for 14-year terms. Magistrate judges are judicial officers of the district courts and are appointed by the judges of the district court for eight-year terms.

International Dispute Resolution

Arbitration: Arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution outside the courts, wherein the parties to a dispute refer it to one or more persons, by whose decision they agree to be bound.
Arbitration Law: U.S Code Title 9: Arbitration Law
Conformity to International Commercial Arbitration Rules: Party to the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards.
Party to the Geneva Protocol on Arbitration Clauses.
Party to the Geneva Convention of the Execution of Foreign Arbitral Awards.
Appointment of Arbitrators: Consult the section 5 on Appointment of arbitrators
Arbitration Procedure: After hearing the parties, the arbitrator makes an award. All arbitration awards will be made in writing. Unless the parties agree otherwise, arbitrators are not required to, and will not, make written opinions or explanation's with their awards.
Permanent Arbitration Bodies: Maritimes Arbitration Association of United States (Sectors Covered: Maritimes)
American Arbitration Association (Sectors Covered: Employment, intellectual property, consumer, technology, health care, financial services and construction.)
The International Centre for Dispute Resolution (ICDR) (Sectors Covered: International trade conflicts)

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This content is provided by Business Wales, an agency of the Welsh Government, and is intended to Welsh individuals and companies for information purposes.