Developments on the Fringe : Article 2 Revisions, Computer Contracting, and Suretyship

Fifty years ago, when the Uniform Commercial Code was promulgated, it was "put forward as the grandest achievement of all time in the history of private statute law making." Today, that grand achievement is in the process of a substantial overhaul. The cracks that have appeared over time are being repaired, but more importantly the scope of the Code is being expanded as transactions not previously formally part of the Code are being brought within its coverage. Article 2A now governs leasing transactions, a species of contract which has existed on the fringes of Articles 2 and 9 for decades. Article 4A has been drafted to deal with electronic funds transfers, a species of payment mechanism which was in its infancy at the time of Code promulgation. Thus, the sponsors and guardians of the Code are confronting and addressing both the old and the new, and the extent to which the Code can and should apply to these transactions