REUTERS | Arben Celi
September 18, 2020

Go for broke! Arbitration and insolvency in Switzerland (Chapter 3)

REUTERS | Arben Celi
September 18, 2020

Go for broke! Arbitration and insolvency in Switzerland (Chapter 3)

As we discussed in our previous contributions, arbitration can be an interesting dispute resolution mechanism in the context of insolvency proceedings, in particular given the facilitated enforcement of international awards. That said, insolvency proceedings often involve mandatory provisions and the active participation of state courts and public authorities. The state will therefore not necessarily allow all aspects of insolvency proceedings to be settled by arbitration but, on the contrary, reserve a considerable part of the process to the exclusive jurisdiction of state courts.

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REUTERS | Thomas Peter
September 10, 2020

Mind the gap: ex parte applications to the court an unwelcome lacuna in the new LCIA Rules

On 11 August 2020, the LCIA published the first update to its arbitration rules since 2014. The 2020 Rules are not a wholesale rewrite of the 2014 Rules, but rather a set of amendments designed to address gaps in the 2014 Rules, and to ensure that the rules remain up to date and fit for purpose in an increasingly virtual era of arbitration. Continue reading →

REUTERS |
September 4, 2020

When there’s smoke but no fire: English court rejects defence based on “indicia” of corruption

In Alexander Brothers Ltd (Hong Kong SAR) v Alstom Transport SA and another, Cockerill J, sitting in the English Commercial Court, upheld an order granting enforcement of an ICC award. The respondent, Alstom, had argued unsuccessfully that enforcement of the award would be contrary to public policy, since there were “indicia” of corruption in the performance of the underlying contracts and any sums paid under the award might go to finance bribery. Continue reading →

REUTERS | Yuya Shino
September 1, 2020

Eighth East Africa International Arbitration Conference: day three report

The eighth edition of the East Africa International Arbitration Conference, which was originally due to take place in Zanzibar, has now been re-organised as an entirely virtual event taking place between 26 to 28 August 2020. Continue reading →

REUTERS | Loren Elliott
August 28, 2020

Eighth East Africa International Arbitration Conference: day two report

The eighth edition of the East Africa International Arbitration Conference, which was originally due to take place in Zanzibar, has now been re-organised as an entirely virtual event taking place between 26 to 28 August 2020. Continue reading →

REUTERS |
August 27, 2020

Eighth East Africa International Arbitration Conference: day one report

The eighth edition of the East Africa International Arbitration Conference, which was originally due to take place in Zanzibar, has now been re-organised as an entirely virtual event taking place between 26 to 28 August 2020. Continue reading →

REUTERS | Kai Pfaffenbach
August 27, 2020

How will an arbitration agreement influence the court’s approach in relation to a winding up petition?

A recent judgment handed down by Sir Geoffrey Vos, Chancellor of the High Court, considered the approach the court should take when a winding up petition is presented with regard to a debt that is not admitted and where the debt is subject to an arbitration agreement.

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REUTERS | Stefan Wermuth
August 24, 2020

Death of a salesman: arbitration and insolvency in Switzerland (Chapter 2)

In our previous contribution, we examined the impact of insolvency proceedings on the validity of arbitration agreements designating Switzerland as the relevant seat. As we saw, such proceedings have no effect on the substantive validity of arbitration agreements. However, this does not necessarily mean that the insolvent party has the capacity to be a party to arbitration proceedings (although the two issues can be difficult to distinguish from one another). The notion of “capacity to arbitrate” (or subjective arbitrability) relates to the ability of a person or entity to enter into an arbitration agreement and act as a party to arbitration proceedings.

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REUTERS | Kim Kyung-Hoon
August 20, 2020

Your signature, please: recent developments under article 41(3) of FAL

Recent developments under article 41(3) of the UAE Federal Arbitration Law (FAL), which entered into force on 16 June 2018 and replaced the former UAE Arbitration Chapter (the arbitration-specific provisions of the UAE Civil Procedures Code), provide some initial guidance on the signature of arbitral awards under the new law. Article 41(3) of FAL contains a mandatory signature requirement in the following simple terms: “the award shall be signed by the arbitrators”. No further guidance, other than this, can be found in the new law. Importantly, the simplicity of the wording echoes the analogical, albeit not identical, wording of corresponding article 212(5) of the former UAE Arbitration Chapter, which read, in equally mandatory terms, in relevant part as follows: “the award must in particular include the signatures of the arbitrators.”

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