Africa continues to attract significant foreign investment, fuelled by rapid urbanisation, technological growth and a rising demand for basic services and infrastructure development. The associated upsurge in cross-jurisdictional disputes involving African parties, many of which are referred to arbitration rather than conventional civil court process, is evident from the annual case load statistics released by major international arbitral bodies. Continue reading
So you’ve settled your jurisdictional turf war, stayed court proceedings in favour of arbitration and finally have a conflicts-free tribunal. The next major tussle is likely to be over the procedure to be followed in the arbitration. Of the various issues to be determined, there is probably no more consequential decision than that of whether to adopt a procedure based around continental-style memorials or common law-style pleadings. Although the memorial approach is becoming increasingly common in commercial arbitrations, it is also not unusual for a pleadings approach to be followed and it is important for practitioners to understand the differences and to think critically about which approach is appropriate for their case. Continue reading
On 3 August 2018, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) published its working paper on potential rule amendments, citing its desire to incorporate the case experience gained and lessons learnt from over 650 ICSID cases into the rules. One of the key new proposed rules requires compulsory disclosure (or notice) of third-party funding. ICSID justified the inclusion of this rule by claiming that it would guard against conflicts of interest between third-party funders and arbitrators. Continue reading
This blog is published in two parts. Part 1, which was published in March this year, provided some background to dispute resolution in the banking and finance sector, highlighting in particular the apparent inaptitude of conventional dispute fora, such as the courts, to deal with Islamic finance disputes adequately. This part 2 addresses how arbitration as an alternative form of dispute resolution can assist in providing Shari’a-compliant solutions where conventional dispute resolution through the courts fails. In doing so, it makes the case for semi-secular arbitration, a form of arbitration that combines Islamic and secular elements to ensure a Shari’a-compliant outcome. Continue reading
The Inter-Pacific Bar Association (IPBA) is an organisation with some similarities to the International Bar Association (IBA), with a regional focus on Asia-Pacific. Its annual conference (the 29th) was this year in Singapore between 24 and 27 April 2019. The conference was well attended by lawyers, experts and various others with an interest in the Asia-Pacific region. This does not necessarily mean that the attendees were from the Asia-Pacific region, and in recent years there has been a notable increase in the number of attendees from Europe and other areas outside Asia-Pacific (including barristers from England). Continue reading
One of the main reasons that parties choose to arbitrate is the ability to select their own arbitrators. Parties are able to choose arbitrators that, they believe, will have the requisite expertise to resolve their arbitration effectively. This ability has now evolved somewhat and parties are increasingly carving out discrete issues to be resolved by an independent expert selected by the parties. Continue reading
A week before Christmas 2018, the Rules on the Efficient Conduct of Proceedings in International Arbitration (Prague Rules) were published. The title suggests that, without them, arbitral proceedings are condemned to be inefficient. The prefatory note from the working group reinforces that impression: Continue reading
On 20 December 2018, the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) released a revised Note to parties and arbitral tribunals on the conduct of the arbitration under the ICC Rules of Arbitration (the note to parties). The revised text, which came into effect from 1 January 2019, adopts a new and very different default position that, barring party opt out, ICC arbitral awards will be published two years after they have been notified to the parties.
Are users behind this shift and is it essential to the future of arbitration?
In part 1 of this blog, we considered the ICC’s approach to the publication of awards and what it means in practice, as well as the move towards transparency. In part 2, we consider what users want from the transparency conundrum and whether there should be a pause.
On 20 December 2018, the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) released a revised Note to parties and arbitral tribunals on the conduct of the arbitration under the ICC Rules of Arbitration (the note to parties). The revised text, which came into effect from 1 January 2019, adopts a new and very different default position that, barring party opt out, ICC arbitral awards will be published two years after they have been notified to the parties.
Are users behind this shift and is it essential to the future of arbitration?
In part 1 of this blog, we consider the ICC’s approach to the publication of awards and what it means in practice, as well as the move towards transparency. In part 2, we consider what users want from the transparency conundrum and whether there should be a pause. Continue reading
After focusing on the conditions for obtaining an anti-suit injunction from an arbitral tribunal under Swiss law in Part 1, this second blog will discuss how Swiss courts deal (or should deal) with anti-suit injunctions in support of arbitration. Continue reading