I am posting this CIArb’s press release for the benefit of our readers:
The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) has launched a major survey into the costs of international arbitration. The ‘Costs of Arbitration’ survey will gather data to inform parties, legal representatives and arbitrators about the overall costs of international commercial arbitration and how these are incurred at each stage.
The results will be analysed and presented at an international conference organised by CIArb and sponsored by Alvarez & Marsal on 27 – 28 September 2011 in London, aimed at uncovering ways in which costs might be reduced and the process streamlined to become more cost-effective and efficient.
International arbitration has a justifiable reputation as the preferred method of dispute resolution for international commercial disputes. The worldwide economic downturn has accelerated a rising trend in favour of the use of international arbitration, where the enforceability of awards under the New York Convention gives it a major advantage over litigation in national courts. Globally, governments have invested in bringing their arbitration laws up-to-date and building modern arbitration centres to capitalise
on this growing market.
However, as the size and complexity of disputes referred to international arbitration has increased, so too have concerns about the growing complexity, cost and time involved in the process, diminishing some of the very factors that make it preferable to the courts for commercial dispute resolution.
CIArb’s Costs of Arbitration survey will play a key role in understanding the present position and, together with the international conference on the Costs of International Arbitration, finding ways of tackling the problem and reducing the costs of arbitration.
Doug Jones SC FCIArb, Vice President of CIArb, a leading Chartered Arbitrator and a member of the organising committee for the conference said: “We invite all legal representatives, in-house counsel and arbitral tribunal members to contribute to this major survey into costs in international arbitration. The survey report and conference will provide an invaluable contribution to the debate on costs, helping to generate proposals to restore speed and cost-effectiveness to the arbitration process. This is essential if international arbitration is to maintain its position as the commercial dispute resolution method of choice.
“To make the survey effective, we need corporate counsel, party representatives, arbitrators and tribunal members to give us as much data as possible on arbitrations in which they have been involved.”
All participants in the survey will receive a report of the survey findings and a discount on the cost of attending the conference.
The launch of CIArb’s survey reflects the sustained growth of international arbitration worldwide and its importance to global corporations. Last month Queen Mary University of London released the findings of its 2010 survey exploring the factors that influence corporate choices about arbitration. CIArb’s survey will focus specifically on the crucial aspect of costs, a factor not specifically examined in the Queen Mary survey but one which is becoming ever more critical to all businesses, especially in the present economic climate.
The conference will assemble an array of distinguished speakers to discuss the impact of costs in different jurisdictions and sectors. It will include contributions from all those involved in the process, from in-house counsel in the commercial, construction, maritime and oil and gas sectors to lawyers, arbitrators and expert witnesses.
It will be an essential date in the diary for all practitioners, corporate counsel, chief executives, commercial and finance directors, international trade lawyers, investment advisers, policymakers and contract drafters.
To complete the Costs in Arbitration Survey (party representatives or arbitral tribunal members) please visit here.
To find out more information about CIArb’s Costs of International Arbitration conference or to register your interest, please visit CIArb’s conference site here.
________________________
To make sure you do not miss out on regular updates from the Kluwer Arbitration Blog, please subscribe here. To submit a proposal for a blog post, please consult our Editorial Guidelines.
