• THE INTERNATIONAL COMMERCE & LAW REVIEW
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• v.74
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• pp.1-23
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• 2017

The buyer must examine the goods, or cause them to be examined, within as short a period as is practicable in the circumstances. Article 38 lays down a fundamental principle that requires the buyer to examine quickly the goods delivered by the seller. Article 38 (1) provides that the examination be made within as short a period as practicable in the circumstances. The goods have to be examined within as short a period as is practicable in the circumstances. The rule is based on the fundamental idea of reasonableness, meaning that the buyer must examine the goods as soon as reasonably possible. It may be said that the buyer should act reasonably fast. Article 38 (2), (3) concerns sales involving carriage of the goods, where the seller's obligation to deliver consists in handing the goods over to the first carrier for transmission to the buyer. In this case the buyer is generally able to examine the goods only after they have come to destination. Article 38 (3) takes into account the case where the buyer redirects the goods in transit or re-dispatches them to another destination. Redirection in transit occurs when the destination is changed before the goods are received by the buyer. The buyer could re-dispatch the goods without having them unloaded, or re-dispatch them through another carrier.