The Bustamante Code (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

: ''Código de Derecho Internacional Privado'') is a treaty intended to establish common rules for

private international law Conflict of laws (also called private international law) is the set of rules or laws a jurisdiction applies to a case, transaction, or other occurrence that has connections to more than one jurisdiction. This body of law deals with three broad t ...

in the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

. The common ideas of the treaty were developed by

Antonio Sánchez de Bustamante y Sirven Antonio Sánchez de Bustamante y Sirven (13 April 1865 – 24 August 1951) was a Cuban lawyer, educator, politician and international jurist. He promoted the existence of a common American regulation for private international law. For this ...

and solidified during the Sixth

Pan-American Conference The Conferences of American States, commonly referred to as the Pan-American Conferences, were meetings of the Pan-American Union, an international organization for cooperation on trade. James G. Blaine, a United States politician, Secretary ...

, held in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

in 1928, with the Treaty of Havana being attached as an annex to the Bustamante Code. The treaty was not widely accepted. The

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

withdrew in the middle of negotiations.

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and Colombia did not sign it.

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

, and

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

decided to abide by the rules of the Treaties of Montevideo with regard to private international law. The countries that ratified it did so with large reservations. The treaty is a set of rules that seeks to regulate the legal relations of foreign trade among the countries party to the treaty. The previously-mentioned reservations cover many of the states' discretion on the use of the code in cases that contradicted the countries' domestic legislation and so its actual purposes are distorted.

References

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External links

Text of the Bustamante Code
(in Spanish PDF)
Signatures and ratifications

Updated signatures, accessions and ratifications list Conflict of laws Treaties concluded in 1928 Treaties entered into force in 1928 Organization of American States treaties Treaties of the First Brazilian Republic Treaties of Bolivia Treaties of Chile Treaties of Costa Rica Treaties of Cuba Treaties of the Dominican Republic Treaties of Ecuador Treaties of El Salvador Treaties of Guatemala Treaties of Haiti Treaties of Honduras Treaties of Nicaragua Treaties of Panama Treaties of Peru Treaties of Venezuela 1928 in Cuba