The Supreme Court of India handed down a judgment earlier this month that restates Indian position on the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in line with the international standards. In the case of Shri Lal Mahal Ltd. v. Progetto Grano Spa, a three judge bench of the apex court held that review of a foreign…

Because international investment law so often involves the application of treaties, the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties plays a key role in structuring its application. Of particular interest for many disputes are the rules of treaty interpretation contained in Articles 31, 32, and 33 of the VCLT. In that context, there are some…

For arbitration geeks, the beach is a challenge – How can you indulge your passion for international arbitration, without (further) outing yourself as a work-alcoholic without a life? I probably can’t help you much, in that category, but one possibility, with two sub-parts, comes to mind. Arbitration history lets you stay focussed on your one…

and Humberto Sáenz-Marinero, Sáenz & Asociados A few weeks ago, we read a post on Kluwer Arbitration Blog about El Salvador by Ricardo Cevallos. The title was “El Salvador becomes an anti-arbitration jurisdiction?” According to the post, El Salvador is becoming an anti-arbitration jurisdiction. We respectfully disagree with the author’s conclusion. It is true that,…

There are many uncertainties in relation to the proper behavior of counsel in arbitration, in particular, in terms of avoiding conflicts of interest, identifying minimum ethical standards, and the overriding question of tribunal control. These uncertainties arise for two main reasons. The first is the lack of consensus as to whether arbitrators have powers of…

by James Menz and Anya George, Schellenberg Wittmer The (proper) use of administrative secretaries is a recurring topic in the arbitration community. The debate has flared up again in recent months, following the issuance, in August 2012, of the ICC Secretariat’s new Note on the Appointment, Duties, and Remuneration of Administrative Secretaries and, a few…

On 16 May 2013, Belgium’s House of Representatives adopted the bill no. 53-2743 that is meant to replace the Sixth Part of the Belgian Code of Civil Procedure (Code judiciaire/Gerechtelijk Wetboek) and thoroughly modernize the Belgian arbitration law. The travaux préparatoires leading to this new law may be consulted here (in French and Dutch). The…

One of the most important elements to consider when participating in arbitration proceedings is the available mechanisms to challenge the award of the arbitral tribunal. This element acquires an added significance when it comes to international arbitration where the award may be enforced in several jurisdictions. With that in mind, it is pertinent to refer…

Investing Across Borders, a World Bank Group’s initiative, compares the regulation for foreign direct investment around the world. Among different indicators, it publishes considerations concerning arbitration of commercial disputes from different jurisdictions. However, the prospective investor must read with caution this Summary, at least regarding arbitration in Brazil. Here is the Summary regarding arbitration in…

and Lucas Bento, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP, New York The United States Supreme Court’s recent decision in Oxford Health Plans LLC v. Sutter, 569 U.S. __ (2013) (the “Decision”), is the latest installment on whether class arbitration has met its end in the United States. For now, class arbitration survives, subject to the…

Resolution A/67/L.28 on the Status of Palestine at the United Nations was passed with an overwhelming majority at the General Assembly on November 29, 2012, thus upgrading the Palestinian Authority’s status from a United Nations permanent observer entity to a non-member observer State. Although the Resolution does not necessarily mean that all States, such as…

Kluwer Arbitration and Kluwer Law International are delighted to announce that the inaugural Kluwer Arbitration User Forum will be held in London (at the International Dispute Resolution Centre (IDRC), 70 Fleet Street, London, EC4Y 1EU) on Tuesday 10th September. This (free) half-day event, will be open to all London-based users of Kluwer Arbitration. With summer…

The facts On January 9, 2008, in the middle of the Amazon Rainforest, the dam of a hydroelectric power plant ruptured liberating 3.1 billion liters of water and precipitating an environmental mishap. Brazilian authorities hastily cornered the electricity generation company. The electricity generation company hastily pointed the finger at the builder of the hydroelectric power…

Over the last two decades the world has witnessed a spectacular growth of investor-state dispute resolution by arbitration (i.e. from a few dozen in 1992 shooting up to 514 cases by the end of 2012). But that trend could stall in the foreseeable future with the realization of the users that international arbitration (investor-state arbitration,…

By Alessandro Villani and Manuela Caccialanza One of the more debated issues in the process of the implementation and review of Regulation No. 44/2001 (“Brussels Regulation”) was the general exclusion of arbitration from the matters covered by the Brussels Regulation. The debate about the opportunity to mitigate such exclusion arises from the subsequent difficulty in…

and Amgad T Husein, Dentons (Managing Partner, Saudi Arabia) 1. Overview Since the enactment of Saudi Arabia’s new Arbitration Law in July 2012, more foreign investors have opted for arbitration in Saudi Arabia rather than in foreign forums. By simplifying dispute resolution and streamlining the enforcement of arbitral awards, the Arbitration Law has sought to…

The Danish Institute of Arbitration (“DIA”) revised its rules effective May 1, 2013, an overhaul from the prior 2008 iteration of its rules that brings the DIA rules into line with those of leading arbitral institutions. As part of these revisions, the DIA has both reorganized the structure of its rules and updated various key…

and José Roberto Oliva Junior and Ricardo Dalmaso Marques, Pinheiro Neto Advogados One of the segments of the infrastructure sectors in Brazil that have lately triggered the greatest amount of disputes are the power generation, distribution and trading sectors. In effect, there’s little disagreement in Brazil nowadays that, just as with other sectors that could…

At the beginning of April, the Brazilian Senate established a Committee for the modification of the Brazilian Arbitration Law – Law no. 9.307 of September 1996. The president of the Committee, Luís Felipe Salomão, believes that the new amendments will strengthen arbitration, as an alternative dispute resolution mechanism. Salomão suggests that the goal of these…

and Thomas Baconin, Orange,  trainee in International Expertise & Conflict Resolution, Litigation, CSR & Real Estate On the 15th of April in the prestigious venue of the Hotel de Ville in Paris, the non-profit organization Paris Place d’Arbitrage introduced its new ad hoc “Paris Arbitration Rules”, in front of 200 law practitioners from the arbitration…

A brief history Arbitration has been a part of the laws of El Salvador for more than a hundred years. The Constitution of 1983 clearly states in Article 23 that every citizen of the country has the right to terminate his or her civil or commercial matters through arbitration. July 2002 marked a dramatic change…

A legislative proposal to modernize Dutch arbitration law has been submitted to Dutch parliament on 16 April 2013. For an informal English translation of a comparison between the legislative proposal with the current Dutch arbitration law, see here. It is anticipated that the Second Chamber of Dutch Parliament will submit a report on the proposal…

by Justin D’Agostino and Briana Young On 28 March 2013, Hong Kong gazetted The Arbitration (Amendment) Bill 2013. The Bill proposes amendments to Hong Kong’s Arbitration Ordinance (Cap. 609) to implement an arrangement for mutual enforcement of awards between Hong Kong and Macao, allow for enforcement of emergency arbitrator decisions in Hong Kong, and provide…