The rapid growth of international arbitration in the Asia-Pacific has sparked many discussions about how different cultural practices and legal traditions impact advocacy in cross-border disputes (see, for example, Global Arbitration Review’s The Guide to Advocacy). On 3 August 2023, ACICA45 and King & Wood Mallesons in Sydney hosted a session titled “Clash of Cultures…

On May 22, 2023, Young ICSID’s first “Advocacy Skills Training: Making an Effective Opening and Closing Statement” took place. It was opened by Celeste E. Salinas Quero and featured Klaus Reichert SC and Donald E. Vinson, Ph.D., who are authors of “Arbitration: The Art & Science of Persuasion”. The two-hour training, held both online and…

As arbitration lawyers, we often reflect on the power of the written word, but rarely do we consider the design’s role in emulating the tone of the word or sentence. With the same emphasis as we strive not to talk in a monotone at a hearing, we should strive to give our written submission the…

This year, the arbitration team at SOAS consisting of Emilia Onyema, Steven Finizio and Baiju Vasani in cooperation with the African Legal Support Facility of the African Development Bank, organised and delivered four separate “counsel in arbitration skills-based training” workshops in collaboration with four arbitral centres in Africa: in Lagos (LACIAC), Douala (CMAG), Kigali (KIAC)…

The trial of Socrates In 399 BC, the philosopher Socrates was tried on the charges of asebeia, or impiety, and of corrupting the youth of Athens. The trial is famous for, inter alia, Socrates’ elenchus, or cross-examination, of his accuser, Meletus. While Socrates’ cross-examination was doubtless an impressive sight, he ultimately failed to successfully advocate…

In the last three decades, the advent of investment treaty arbitration and more recently third-party funding have led to an exponential rise in the number of international arbitrations pursued by private parties against sovereign States. Against this background, on March 28, 2022, as part of Paris Arbitration Week, Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle hosted the…

One of the leading scholars in international dispute resolution today is Sundaresh Menon, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Singapore. In March of 2021, he delivered the opening address at the Singapore International Commercial Court Symposium. As part of his welcome delivered virtually, he made some interesting observations: History informs us that while…

On 17 March 2022, Abu Dhabi witnessed an event which was five years in the making: a joint-conference by ICSID and the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) titled “Investment Arbitration in the Middle East”. This post recaps some highlights from the event, as well as offering further views and commentary.   Event Kick-off and Its…

In the past year, there has been a paradigm shift from a norm of in-person hearings to a norm of virtual hearings. As part of the 10th Hong Kong Arbitration Week, KCAB INTERNATIONAL and the Korean Council for International Arbitration (KOCIA) invited arbitration practitioners, mostly based in the dynamic Korean arbitration market, to share their…

On June 22, 2021, the Dispute Resolution Interest Group (“DRIG”) of the American Society of International Law hosted the webinar “Psychology in Oral Advocacy:  Using Science to Persuade International Tribunals.”  The event featured Doak Bishop, Ula Cartwright-Finch, Jennifer K. Robbennolt and Sabina Sacco, and was moderated by DRIG co-chairs Simon Batifort and Rémy Gerbay.  This…

A few days ago I had the fortune of attending the fourth webinar of the Young ITA Mentorship Program – Speaker Series, entitled The (Sometimes Forgotten) Importance of the Arts and Psychology in Advocacy in International Arbitration. Part of the dialogue focused on reviewing whether theatrical study could be useful to lawyers in enhancing their…

International Law Talk is a series of podcasts through which Wolters Kluwer provides the latest news and industry insights from thought leaders and experts in the fields of International Arbitration, IP Law, International Tax Law, and Competition Law. Here at Kluwer Arbitration Blog, we highlight the podcasts focused on international arbitration. In this latest episode,…

The third of our series continues with a fireside chat with four of our fellow editors: Kiran Gore (Associate Editor), Mary Mitsi (Assistant Editor for Europe), Theresa Tseung (Assistant Editor for East and Central Asia), and Ylli Dautaj (Assistant Editor) (Investment Arbitration).   Good day all and thank you for joining me today!   Let’s…

While the hurdles of virtual hearings have been documented with numerous intelligible solutions, little attention has been turned towards how advocacy is faring in the offline-online migration. It is an attractive notion to think that advocacy, in its subjective glory, can be seamlessly transplanted from the offline world and into the virtual dimension with little…

Introduction The Society of Construction Law India and the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators India Branch together held an International Conference on Construction Law and Arbitration in New Delhi, India in December, 2019. The conference was well attended by practitioners and participants from various jurisdictions.  Needless to say, the construction industry is one of the fastest…

For the first time, YSIAC Conference this year featured an ARBXTalk where the speaker was given 18 minutes to present a topic of his or her choice in an inspirational or thought-provoking way. Mr. Christopher Y. Chan, the General Counsel and Head of Government Affairs at Lazada Singapore, was the speaker at the inaugural event….

The Young SIAC (“YSIAC“) Conference 2019 took place earlier today in Singapore, attracting young arbitration practitioners from all across the globe. The theme of the 2019 Conference was “Arbitration 2.0 – Navigating New Frontiers in International Dispute Resolution”, which explored the impact of various trends, technologies and innovations in international arbitration. Nonetheless, while trends may…

Released in 2017 in their 4th edition 2016, the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts (“UNIDROIT Principles”) provide an ingenious tool for cross-border contract drafting and dispute resolution on neutral ground. This is particularly so if the choice is combined with an arbitration clause, because, pursuant to many arbitration laws, “[t]he arbitral tribunal shall decide…

At the dawn of the New Year, foreign arbitration specialists will welcome some reassurance to the effect that the amendments made to the UAE Advocacy Law, also known as Federal Law No. (23) of 1991 on the Regulation of the Legal Profession, in November 2017 (see Ministerial Resolution No. (972) of 2017 on the Executive…

Since 30 years, international arbitration of business disputes continues to increase. It has become the primary form, some say “the natural way”, of settling commercial disputes between companies or individuals from different countries. As international arbitration becomes more popular and wide-spread it has also become more sophisticated, developing its own procedures and documents. The steady…

On 23 February 2017, three prominent international arbitrators shared their views and experience on the controversial question of the influence of legal traditions on arbitrators and arbitral proceedings. Juliet Blanch, Bernard Hanotiau and Pedro J. Martinez-Fraga were interviewed by Oliver Caprasse and Claire Morel de Westgaver at an event jointly organised by Belgian arbitration institution…

for YSIAC In an age of ever-increasing complexity, where your watch can open your garage and answer your phone (yes, the Apple watch can really do that), many of us in the international arbitration community have lost sight of the most powerful weapon in the advocate’s toolbox: simplicity. A previous post on this blog eloquently…

The 27th Annual Workshop of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration (“ITA”), which took place on June 17-18 in Dallas, Texas, examined  “Subconscious Influences in International Arbitration”.  The Workshop was organized by co-chairs José Astigarraga of Astigarraga Davis (Miami), Professor Margaret Moses of Loyola University Chicago School of Law (Chicago) and Luke Sobota of Three Crowns…

and Oleg Temnikov “Put forth your best” by Bill Clennan The contest lasts for moments Though the training’d taken years. It wasn’t winning alone that was worth the work and tears. The applause will be forgotten The prize will be misplaced. But the long hard hours of practice will never be a waste. For in…