Universität Wien

030109 KU Comparative and Uniform Secured Finance Law (2022S)

3.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 3 - Rechtswissenschaften
Continuous assessment of course work
REMOTE
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 50 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

Please note that the course is a specialized course in English and thus it requires good knowledge of English and basic knowledge of Sachenrecht, Insolvenzrecht and Internationales Privatrecht

First date for the exam: 14th of April 2022 10:00-12:00 (online)
Second date for the exam: 19th of May 2022 11:00-13:00 (online)

  • Wednesday 09.03. 10:00 - 12:00 Digital
  • Thursday 10.03. 10:00 - 12:00 Digital
  • Wednesday 16.03. 10:00 - 12:00 Digital
  • Thursday 17.03. 10:00 - 12:00 Digital
  • Wednesday 23.03. 10:00 - 12:00 Digital
  • Thursday 24.03. 10:00 - 12:00 Digital
  • Wednesday 30.03. 10:00 - 12:00 Digital
  • Thursday 31.03. 10:00 - 12:00 Digital
  • Tuesday 05.04. 10:00 - 12:00 Digital
  • Wednesday 06.04. 10:00 - 12:00 Digital

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

The course will mainly deal with uniform secured transactions law, that is, the law on security interests in movable, tangible and intangible, property (including equipment, inventory, receivables, negotiable instruments, negotiable documents, intellectual property and non-intermediated securities). While the focus will be on substantive law, the course will also discuss conflict-of-laws issues, that is, the law applicable to security interests in movable property, and insolvency issues, that is, the treatment of security interests in insolvency.

At the beginning of each class, the students will be introduced to definitions and concepts to be considered in depth during the class. This will be followed by presentation of secured transactions issues. Against this background, the final part of each class will be devoted to discussing advantages and disadvantages of the policy approaches analysed, and there will always be time for discussion. The goal is to assist students to understand better comparative and uniform law and, with the comparison, even their own national secured transactions law. Participants should have completed courses on secured transactions law, contract law, private international law and insolvency law. As courses will be in English and students will be expected to contribute to the discussions, participants need to have a good command of the English language.

The purpose of this course is to:

• Provide students with an overview of comparative uniform secured finance law with a particular focus on the work of UNCITRAL
• Help students appreciate the practical importance of secured finance following a comprehensive approach, including retention-of-title sales and financial leases, registration, insolvency and applicable law issues
• Help students to identify, on the basis of comparative information, advantages and disadvantages of national secured finance laws
• Equip students with basic knowledge necessary while working in an international environment, in particular, in dealing with international secured finance
• Provide students with the key comparative law skills in order to facilitate work involving foreign laws
• Open students’ minds to controversial issues relating to secured finance law,
inspire their research and enhance their future experience in the legal practice.

Assessment and permitted materials

Assessment will be on the basis of an essay (40%), a written test (40%) and performance in the class (20%).

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

Essay:

Students may wish to suggest a topic of their choice or select one of the topics below after consultation with the lecturer. The essay should be between 5 and 10 A4 pages long.

1. The creation, perfection, priority and enforcement of a security interest in movable (tangible and intangible) property under the UNCITRAL Model Law compared with [a national law].

2. The treatment of security interests in insolvency under the UNCITRAL Secured Transactions Guide compared with [a national law].

3. Law applicable to security interests in [type or types of movable property] under the UNCITRAL Model Law compared with [a national law].

Any other related matter to be agreed upon with the lecturer.

Please note that the essays should be handed in until the 16th of May, 18:00.

Examination topics

Reading list

I. Students will be expected to read:

1. The UNCITRAL Model Law on Secured Transactions (2016).
2. The Guide to Enactment of the Model Law (2017).
3. The Practice Guide (2019).

II. As background materials, students may wish to use the following texts:

1. The United Nations Convention on the Assignment of Receivables in International Trade (2001).
2. The UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on Secured Transactions (2007).
3. The UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on Secured Transactions: Supplement on Security Rights in Intellectual Property (2010).
4. UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on a Security Rights Registry (2013).

III. Students may also wish to read the flowing articles of the lecturer:

1. UNCITRAL Model Law on Secured Transactions and UCC Article 9 compared Spyridon V. Bazinas and Edwin E. Smith

2. UNCITRAL Model Law and UCC Article 9 Conflict-of-Laws Rules Compared Spyridon V. Bazinas and Edwin E. Smith

3. The law applicable to third-party effects of assignments of claims: the U.N. Convention and the E.U. Commission Proposal compared, Zeitschrift für Finanzmarktrecht, 5/2019, 217-228.

4. The OAS and the UNCITRAL Model Laws on Secured Transactions compared. Uniform law review (Oxford, U.K.) 22:4:914-929, 2017.

5. UNCITRAL’s contribution to Intellectual Property Financing Law, in Security Interests in Intellectual Property, ed. Toshiyuki Kono, Springer, 2017.

6. The UNCITRAL Model Law on Secured Transactions, in International and Comparative Secured Transactions Law, Essays in honour of Roderick A. Macdonald, ed. Spyridon V. Bazinas and N. Orkun Akseli, Hart Publishing, 2017.

7. The UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on Secured Transactions and the draft UNCITRAL Model Law on Secured Transactions compared, in Secured transactions law reform: principles, policies and practice. L. Gullifer, O. Akseli (eds.), Oxford, U.K., Hart Publishing, 2016, p.481-502.

8. Security Interests in Non-intermediated Securities in the UNCITRAL Draft Model Law on Secured Transactions, in Eppur si muove: The Age of Uniform Law: Essays in honour of Michael Joachim Bonell to celebrate his 70th birthday, Unidroit, Rome 2016, p. 305-315.

9. The draft UNCITRAL Model Law on Secured Transactions, in The draft UNCITRAL Model Law on Secured Transactions: why and how? B. Foëx, ed. Geneva/Zurich, Schulthess, 2016, p. 19-44.

10. The influence of the UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on Secured Transactions, in Research Handbook on Secured Financing in Commercial Transactions. F. Dahan, ed. Cheltenham, U.K., Edward Elgar, 2015, p. 26-61.

11. The Geneva Securities Convention and UNCITRAL texts on secured transactions compared, in Transnational Securities Law. T. Keijser, ed. Oxford, U.K., Oxford University Press, 2014, p. 87-116.

IV. Additional recommended reading:

1. Hugh Beale, Michael Bridge, Louise Gullifer and Eva Lomnicka, The law of security and title-based financing, Oxford University Press, 2012, 1.01-2.20, 4.01-9.26, 12.01-13.27, and 18.01-21.04.

2. Moritz Brinkmann, Kreditsicherheiten an beweglichen Sachen, Mohr Siebeck, 2011, 1-83, 424-485.

3. Steven L. Harris and Charles W. Mooney, Jr., Security Interests in Personal Property, Cases, Problems and Materials, Fifth edition, Foundation Press, 2011, 1-95.

4. UNCITRAL bibliography on security interests (see https://uncitral.un.org/sites/uncitral.un.org/files/media-documents/uncitral/en/consol_bib_1968_2007_7.pdf and https://www.zotero.org/groups/282978/bibliography_of_recent_writings_related_to_the_work_of_uncitral/collections/KM62SEDG).

Association in the course directory

Last modified: Th 11.05.2023 11:26