“La distinction des principes généraux du droit et des usages du commerce international”, in Etudes offertes à Pierre Bellet, 1991, p. 203.

When any new doctrine is introduced, and while it is too loosely defined to be seriously challenged by the other doctrines with which it will interact, we are tempted to lend to its consistency by avoiding the subtleties and grouping together the various elements likely to become associated with it. The lex mercatoria did not escape this essential evolutionary phase. Yet, today it is sufficiently concrete to withstand the level of refinement needed to respond to the critiques raised against it. Therefore, it is with a firm belief in both the existence and usefulness of the lex mercatoria we separate the general principles of law from the usages of international commerce.

(In French)

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