It has been clear for some time that commercial law has been undergoing a transnationalization process, with various sets of rules (often referred to collectively as Lex mercatoria or the New Law Merchant) supplanting national and local laws governing the mechanisms by which cross-border agreements are entered into and disputes settled. In order to clarify the nature and extent of this process, a scientific survey, sponsored by the Volkswagen Foundation and using empirical methodology, was designed by a Research Team from the Centre for Transnational Law (CENTRAL) of Munster University, Germany. A questionnaire was sent out to more than 2,700 practitioners from major companies and international law firms in 78 countries asking for the addressees' experience with transnational law in international contract negotiations, contract drafting, and international commercial arbitration. The results of this enquiry, along with analysis and commentary from several well-known authorities in the fields of international commercial arbitration and private international law, were presented at a conference in Munster on May 4 and 5, 2000. This book is a record of that conference.