In a recent decision, the Supreme Court of Western Australia (“WA”) Court of Appeal confirmed that courts have the conclusive authority to determine the jurisdiction of arbitral tribunals. The Commercial Arbitration Act 2012 (WA) (the “Act”) confers competence upon arbitral tribunals to determine their own jurisdiction. However, courts retain authority to review questions of jurisdiction….

Almost 4 years ago, Kluwer Arbitration Blog published an article titled “The Fate of Finality Clause in Ethiopia” by Mintewab Afework, which clearly examined the parties’ prerogative to submit their disputes to arbitration and to waive their right of appeal on the final arbitral award, as applicable at the time. After 4 years, two significant…

One of the great advantages of arbitration is that it is a “one-shot” dispute resolution mechanism that does not allow for a series of appeals. Indeed, many users stress the finality of awards and the lack of an appeals mechanism as a valuable characteristic of arbitration. However, there may be situations where the “one shot”…

Introduction The second day of the Asia ADR Week 2022 kicked off with a panel discussion on Rechartering a Modern Legislative Framework with Mr Abang Iwawan (Abang & Co.) as moderator. Mr Iwawan was joined by Ms Karen Ng Gek Suan (Karen, Mak & Partners), Mr Rajendra Navaratnam (Azman Davidson & Co.), Mr Foo Joon…

Winston Churchill said in 1942 that the war was not at the end, adding: “It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning”. When it comes to international arbitration, the beginning is easy enough to discern from the notice of arbitration. Divining the end can be…

In the legal world, countless hours are spent choosing, weighing and defining words, expressions and phrases, and linguistic precision is instilled as a virtue from the first day of law school. It is therefore rather concerning when courts use both inaccurate and inapt language to address a specific issue, such as when Canadian courts consider…

It is trite that an award may be set aside if there has been a breach of the rules of natural justice. This may arise from, among others, a tribunal’s procedural ruling. However, during the arbitration, there is no recourse for parties to challenge such procedural rulings. This was the situation in CBS v CBP…

The approach historically taken by Canadian courts to playing the role of guardian with respect to domestic commercial arbitration has sometimes been both confused and confusing, a situation only cofounded by recent Supreme Court of Canada (“Supreme Court”) jurisprudence. With the release of Sattva in 2014 and Teal Cedar in 2017 , the Supreme Court…

In a March 2021 decision, Pravin Electricals Pvt. Ltd. v. Galaxy Infra and Engineering Pvt. Ltd. (“Pravin Electricals”), a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court (the “Court”) shed light on an “anomaly” that exists in the operation of Sections 8 and 11 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (the “Act”). The Court clarified its…

Introduction In the past few years, the world has been following the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) reform debate under the aegis of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). This discussion started in 2017, when the UNCITRAL Working Group III began its work on ISDS reform. Among the proposals submitted by member States…

Corruption, annulment of arbitral awards and court intervention mark the main developments for 2020 in Latin America.  Our contributors this year reported on the most important judicial decisions and legislative measures impacting the legal framework of various jurisdictions in the region. A new ‘hot topic’ arising from the COVID-19 pandemic is the interplay between arbitration…

The Chilean Supreme Court recently issued a decision that, on its face, respects party autonomy in international arbitration. But, it could do more harm than good. On September 14, 2020, the Chilean Supreme Court (the “Court”) entered a final judgement in the case CCF SUDAMERICA SPA, Rol Nº 19568-2020 (“CCF Sudamericana” or the “Decision”). The…

Last week BCLP released the results of its annual International Arbitration survey on the topic of appeals against a tribunal’s decision on the merits. Respondents to the survey comprised arbitrators, corporate counsel, external lawyers, litigation funders, academics and those working at arbitral institutions. Procedures for court challenge of an award on the basis of procedural…

Introduction In domestic award enforcement proceedings, the U.S. federal Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (“Second Circuit”) in New York recently reversed a lower federal trial court’s decision to vacate that award on grounds that the arbitrator manifestly disregarded the law.  See Weiss v. Sallie Mae, Inc., Dkt. No. 18-2362, Slip Op. (2d Cir….

Introduction The enforcement bar is becoming more specialized. This development follows the trend in U.S. litigation towards increasing specialization and the growth of niche practice industries; but it also stems from specific changes to the enforcement regime that are addressed in this article and that have important implications for the life-cycle of an international arbitration….

Recently, the 2018 White & Case International Arbitration Survey confirmed London, Paris, Singapore, Hong Kong, Geneva, New York and Stockholm as the most in-demand places for arbitration in the world. Brazil is well represented by São Paulo – the economic hub of the country – which occupied eighth place in the overall ranking. This result…

In a marked departure from its usual closed-doors policy, the Swiss Federal Supreme Court (the “Supreme Court”) recently held public deliberations in two separate appeal proceedings concerning foreign investment arbitrations. In both cases, a public deliberation by all five judges of the first civil chamber was necessitated due to the lack of unanimity among the…

The cassation bench of the Supreme Court of Ethiopia, whose decisions have precedential value, in National Motors Corp. v. General Business Development case has ruled that parties’ final intention to be bound by an arbitration award shall be final and may not be subject to review by courts, including the cassation bench. The bench, however,…

Two recent pieces of recent research raise the question of whether arbitration users really value finality in arbitration or take it for granted. Is it time (again) to discuss whether s69 Arbitration Act 1996 is meeting users’ needs? Arbitration Act 1996, s69 Section 69 of the Arbitration Act 1996 (AA 1996, s 69) is a…

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York has enforced a P&I Club’s internal claims appeal process as a legally binding alternative dispute resolution (“ADR”) method, rejecting allegations brought by one the Club’s Members that the procedure was “fundamentally unfair.” TransAtlantic Lines LLC v. Am. Steamship Owners Mut. Prot. & Indemn. Ass’n,…

On April 28, 2017, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (in a majority decision) affirmed the district court’s decision to set aside an award issued by a sole arbitrator finding that the award violated public policy.  The award was rendered in the context of mandatory arbitration of statutory claims under the…

2016 was an important year for international arbitration. Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales challenged the legitimacy of international arbitration, while supporters such as former Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia (Robert French AC) came forward to defend its coexistence with commercial courts. Several institutions such as ACICA, SIAC and KCAB updated…

Appellate arbitration clauses provide for an appellate mechanism against an award rendered between the concerned parties by subjecting the dispute through another arbitration to eliminate all potential errors and obtain correction of the same. Not all arbitration disputes are suitable for an appellate review. But in cases where parties place higher importance on the correctness…

A few months ago a piece was published on the Kluwer blog on s. 69 of the English Arbitration Act, a provision which gives a party to an English-seated arbitration a limited right of appeal on a point of law (absent an agreement to the contrary with its contractual counterparty).  Based on a review of…