The state of development of EDI, although maturing in terms of implementation and message standards, still requires flexible tools and guidelines to maintain the highest growth momentum. The objective of the sample clauses offered in this section is to provide both Ministry of Defence and NATO Agency with a concrete and pragmatic tool which addresses the basic legal and contractual issues raised by the use of EDI. Those sample clauses will appear in the following paragraphs as [ Times Roman Italics]. The authoritative source for clauses to be included in contractual documents is AC/313. That committee has published the guidelines from which the following samples are drawn. The following are examples only, offered to assist in understanding the issues involved. The ones implementing such agreements should refer to the latest AC/313 guideline document.

These examples are offered for application in situations where a signed document needs to be established between a ministry or an agency and its trading partners with respect to data which are going to be electronically exchanged, but they do not apply to database access.

Ministries and agencies may consider it appropriate to envelope the electronic interchange of data within a legally binding framework, so that the obligations of the signatories towards each other are clearly seen to be enforceable. Some nations, on the other hand, may choose not to use a legally enforceable, signed, format to set down these obligations; they may choose instead to lay down the principles concerned in law or regulations, depending on the characteristics of their legal code. Nevertheless, extracts from these sample clauses may be appropriate for use in the development of such laws and regulations. Different legal issues have been identified with the use of Electronic Data Interchange for the purposes of commercial transactions or similar commercially sensitive transactions, or other data exchange with legal consequences.

Although these issues do not prevent the use of Electronic Data Interchange, they create legal uncertainty. One of the most pragmatic ways to address these issues is to resolve them, to the extend possible, in a legal framework.

The objective of these sample clauses is to provide the Electronic Data Interchange users with a tool which addresses these legal issues. In general, the samples are provided for bilateral relationship. However the samples can also be used for multilateral agreements and/or can be adopted by a community of users. The legal provisions should be signed by the parties to show that they intend to enter into an agreement.

The samples provided address all issues to cover an EDI relationship between parties. Subsequent rights and obligations and the legal consequences of the use of EDI between the parties will derive from the Agreement thus formed. The sample clauses are intended to cover all the subjects to be addressed under an electronic data interchange relationship, including electronic mail. The guidelines and sample clauses cover a wide range of electronic exchange of data, from electronic mail to the ultimate Electronic Data Interchange, which is the transfer of data from computer to computer without human involvement.

The transfers involved can vary from commercial trade transactions under an Integrated Logistic Support programme (e.g. ordering spare parts from contractor stock) to exchange of proprietary data when developing a weapon system data base. Some of the clauses include general references to technical matters. These technical matters require further specifications. They are often found in so-called "user manual". The samples need to be completed by a User Manual which will include the necessary technical specifications as determined by the parties. The User Manual is left to the Electronic Data Interchange users to develop, draft and/or agree according to their needs.