About the Uniform Commercial Code

The states, not the Federal government, are the primary source of law on commercial transactions in the U.S. In all 50 states and the District of Columbia at least some of that commercial law is based on the Uniform Commercial Code (U.C.C.). A joint project of the American Law Institute and the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, the first version of the U.C.C. was a "1952 Official Text." While one of several versions of the U.C.C. has now been adopted, at least in part, by each of the states, not all states have adopted the most recent version and many states have amended some of the "uniform" provisions. As a consequence, the provisions of the U.C.C. appearing here are not, in fact, the uniform law of the U.S. The version appearing here is the most recent. Most of its provisions are in effect in most of the states.

Each section of the U.C.C. is the subject of an "Official Comment." While these comments have not been enacted by state legislatures, they are heavily relied on by lawyers and courts. They are, by far, the most important source of assistance in interpreting the Code. In this hypertext version of the U.C.C., each section is linked to the appropriate official comment (and vice versa). The official comments contain numerous cross references. These have all been linked.

Ultimately, all of the U.C.C. will appear here. The present collection consists of Articles 1 and 2. Article 2 covers the sale of goods (from livestock to computers). (Its terms do not cover to the sale of services.) Article 1 contains key definitions and other general provisions that apply throughout the Code.

Related Legal Material

International sales of goods are governed by the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods.

© Copyright 2005 by The American Law Institute and the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws; reproduced, published and distributed with the permission of the Permanent Editorial Board for the Uniform Commercial Code for the limited purposes of study, teaching, and academic research.