Achmea, Amicus Curiae, Energy Charter Treaty, Enforcement, Intra-EU Investment Arbitration, Intra-EU ISDS, Set aside an arbitral award, Spain

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On February 2, 2024, the United States filed an amicus brief (the “Amicus”) responding to a request from the United States (“US”) Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit to provide the US’ position regarding the enforcement of three “intra-EU” investment arbitration awards issued under the Energy Charter Treaty (“ECT”) against the Kingdom of Spain….

Commercial Arbitration, KSA, RIDW, Saudi Arabia, SCCA

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The Saudi Center for Commercial Arbitration (“SCCA”) has recently revamped its rules, aiming to solidify its position as a global leader in arbitration. The latest amendments, which have been elaborated in a previous post here, showcase a commitment to efficiency, flexibility, and party engagement, appearing to set a new standard for commercial dispute resolution and…

Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Enforcement, MENA

(Al Owais Advocates & Legal Consultants)/ /Leave a comment

Amongst the strides taken by the United Arab Emirates (“UAE”) in recent years, there is the improvement made to the enforcement process of foreign awards in the UAE courts. This post examines the legislative changes made in this area, how the UAE courts have approached applications for the enforcement of foreign awards and the grounds…

KSA, RIDW, Saudi Arabia, SCCA

(Majed Alrsheed Law Firm)/ /Leave a comment

This post will discuss the scope of arbitration agreements and arbitrability issues under the arbitration law of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (“KSA”), as interpreted by the Saudi Judiciary. Some of the principles that have been established by the Saudi judiciary in this regard include the following.   Arbitration agreements bind the successors Arbitration agreements…

2023 in Review, ECT Modernisation, Energy Charter Treaty, ISDS Reform, UNCITRAL WG III Series, UNCITRAL WG3 Series

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2023 marked a milestone in the reform of investor-State dispute settlement (“ISDS”). In July 2023, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (“UNCITRAL”) Commission notably adopted the Code of Conduct for Arbitrators in International Investment Dispute Resolution (“Code for Arbitrators”) and adopted in principle the Code of Conduct for Judges in International Investment Dispute…

European Commission, European Union, Investment protection, Investor-State arbitration, Model Clauses

, , (Herbert Smith Freehills LLP)/ /Leave a comment

In October 2023, the European Commission published a Non-Paper of Annotations to Model Clauses for Negotiation or Re-negotiation of Member States’ Bilateral Investment Treaties (“BITs”) with Third Countries (“Model Clauses”) (“Non-Paper”). Non-papers are informal documents usually put forward in closed negotiations with EU institutions. The views in this Non-Paper do not necessarily communicate an official…

Kluwer Arbitration Blog

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The Editorial Board of Kluwer Arbitration Blog announces the opening of the following two additional positions with Kluwer Arbitration Blog: (1) Assistant Editor for Europe and (2) Assistant Editor for Investment Arbitration. The Assistant Editor reports directly to the coordinating Associate Editor and is expected to (1) collect, edit, and review guest submissions from the…

Arbitration Agreement, India, SIAC, Validity

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The Supreme Court of India (“Supreme Court”), in its recent landmark judgment in In Re: Interplay between Arbitration Agreements under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996 and the Indian Stamp Act 1899 (“the 7J Judgment”), provides welcome clarity on the question of enforceability of arbitration agreements contained in unstamped or inadequately stamped contracts, and reinforces…

Arbitration, Evidence, Expert Appointment, KSA, RIDW, Saudi Arabia, SCCA

, (Holman Fenwick Willan LLP)/ /Leave a comment

Expert witness evidence plays a pivotal role in the outcome of arbitrations, particularly in construction disputes. Rarely do construction disputes turn on significant differences between the parties’ versions of the facts, which are flushed out under dramatic, Boston Legal-style cross-examination. More often, it is the skilful application of settled facts by the parties’ legal counsel…

2023 in Review, Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland, Switzerland

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This post highlights the most significant arbitration-related decisions of the Swiss Federal Supreme Court (“SFSC”) in 2023 that are of interest to the international arbitration community at large. Part I focuses on the scope of arbitration clause and its validity in the context of a party’s (in)capacity of discernment, as well as on the new…

2023 in Review, Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland, Switzerland

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Part II of the 2023 Year in Review: Switzerland post (see Part I here) introduces new case law on the enforcement of arbitral awards. It also includes a continuation of the Swiss Federal Supreme Court’s (“SFSC”) case law on the parties’ duty of curiosity in respect of an arbitrator’s independence and impartiality.   Enforcement a)…

Abu Dhabi, DIAC, Dubai, KSA, MENA, SCCA

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Abu Dhabi’s latest foray, the Abu Dhabi International Arbitration Centre, came into effect on 1 February 2024. Branded and referred to as arbitrateAD, its new set of arbitration rules (“arbitrateAD Rules”) was published on 1 February 2024 and consists of a newly established Board of Directors and Court of Arbitration. In this post, we provide a…

ICJ, Investment Disputes, Investment law, Washington Arbitration Week

(Concepción Global, PLLC, Universidad Complutense de Madrid)/ /Leave a comment

On 29 November 2023, Professor Kiran N. Gore (The George Washington University Law School) moderated the “signature panel” of the Fourth Washington Arbitration Week (“WAW”), which focused on the interplay between judgments of the International Court of Justice (“ICJ”)/ Permanent Court of International Justice (“PCIJ”) and investor-State dispute settlement (“ISDS”). The program bridged and expanded…

2023 in Review, ESG, Human Rights, ICSID Arbitration, Investment Arbitration

(Georgetown Law) and (Columbia Law School)/ /Leave a comment

This is the fifth consecutive year that we, either together or separately, have reported on trends at the intersection of human rights and international investment arbitration from the prior year (see prior Blog coverage, here, here, here, and here). As we emphasized last year, developments at this intersection continue directional trends from prior years, but also the aperture for…

Artificial Intelligence, Climate change, KSA, RIDW, Saudi Arabia, SCCA, Technology

(Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP)/ /Leave a comment

Data-Related Disputes Nearly five billion people use social media. Last year saw the expansion of AI-based businesses, from search engines to data analytics to product development. Some of the most valuable data for AI-training sets includes photographs, names, birth dates, consumer preferences, and family histories that users have published online or otherwise made available. Companies…

KSA, RIDW, Saudi Arabia, SCCA

(Zamakchary and Co)/ /Leave a comment

Six years ago, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (“KSA”) introduced the Bankruptcy Law, revolutionizing the legal landscape for liquidation and restructuring. This marked a significant shift by establishing a clear framework for handling insolvent entities. Recently, the Saudi Civil Transactions Law (“CTL”), effective from December 2023, enables creditors to transfer their rights for consideration, potentially…

Arbitration Reform, Azerbaijan, International Arbitration Law Library Series, International Arbitration Procedures, UNCITRAL Model Law

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On 26 December 2023, Azerbaijan adopted a new Law on Arbitration (“the Law” or “the New Law”) that regulates both international and domestic arbitration. It is mostly based on the 2006 edition of the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration (“2006 UNCITRAL Model Law”) but contains certain important differences. This post discusses the most…

Energy Charter Treaty, modernisation process, Washington Arbitration Week

(Derains&Gharavi, KU Leuven) and (Concepción Global, PLLC, Universidad Complutense de Madrid)/ /Leave a comment

The Fourth Edition of the Washington Arbitration Week (“WAW”) took place from 27 November to 1 December 2023. This post presents the panel on “ECT Modernization or Collapse?”. Jose Antonio Rivas, SJD (WAW/Xtrategy), introduced the panel with a remark that, while the Energy Charter Treaty (“ECT”) modernization process was ongoing, new ECT awards surfaced, and…

KSA, RIDW, Saudi Arabia, SCCA, Uncategorized

(Abdel Raouf Law Firm)/ /Leave a comment

The first Riyadh International Disputes Week (“RIDW”) presents an excellent occasion for international, regional, and local experts and practitioners to meet and exchange their views regarding salient developments in the various areas of dispute resolution. The upcoming Saudi Center for Commercial Arbitration Third International Conference and Arbitration (“SCCA24”) on 6 March 2024, which is scheduled…

Dubai, MENA, United Arab Emirates

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The United Arab Emirates (“UAE”) courts have traditionally held that arbitration is an exceptional means of resolving disputes. However, in recent years, there has been a significant shift in the UAE courts’ approach with decisions confirming that arbitration is not merely an exceptional means of resolving parties’ disputes, but an equal alternative to litigation. In…

ADR, Arb-Med, Asia-Pacific, Australia, International Arbitration Procedures, International Commercial Arbitration, investor-State arbitration and mediation, Litigation, Med-Arb, Mediation

(University of Sydney & Williams Trade Law)/ /Leave a comment

On 22 February 2024, I am pleased to deliver the 6th ADR Address of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, co-organised by the Australian Disputes Centre. Past lecturers have been senior former or serving Australian judges, with some discussing developments in arbitration. More widely, there has been quite extensive discussion on case law and…

KSA, RIDW, Saudi Arabia, SCCA

, , , (Addleshaw Goddard LLP)/ /Leave a comment

Arbitration has emerged as a preferred and valuable tool for resolving disputes. However, the associated costs and time can sometimes deter parties from pursuing this avenue. Fortunately, there are various strategies for parties to avoid lengthy proceedings, reduce costs, and regain control over the arbitral process. In this post, we have compiled a non-exhaustive list…

Africa, FET

(Morgan and Morgan )/ /Leave a comment

Countries have taken different strategies in framing the concept of fair and equitable treatment (“FET”). This post first highlights the evolution of the FET standard at a global level and then discusses the recent approaches taken by African states at an individual, regional, and continental level in framing this standard of treatment to better examine…

KSA, RIDW, Saudi Arabia, SCCA

(Clyde & Co. LLP)/ /Leave a comment

The imminent arrival of Riyadh International Disputes Week (“RIDW“) is a natural opportunity to reflect on the Gulf/Middle East disputes market and the factors that will impact on the success of the Saudi Center for Commercial Arbitration (“SCCA“) which will undoubtedly be at the heart of RIDW. As with all things in the Gulf/Middle East…