In recent years, arbitration in India has grappled with numerous challenges.  Recalcitrant parties knocking on the doors of trigger-happy courts ensured, unfortunately, that arbitration was viewed with mistrust in India.  However, the changes observed in the last few years, including those discussed in our prior year in review posts focused on India (see here, here…

On 7 October 2022, the High Court of the Republic of Singapore (“High Court”) delivered a landmark decision on the enforceability of foreign emergency arbitration awards in CVG v CVH. The High Court rejected the enforceability of the emergency award on the ground of procedural irregularity, reinforcing the importance of due process even in cases where…

The annual “Great Debate” took place on the fourth day of Australian Arbitration Week. This event, organised with the support of hosting sponsor Corrs Chambers Westgarth, has now become a mainstay of Australian Arbitration Week, and involves a lively comedic debate between Team Arbitration and Team Litigation about which method of dispute resolution should reign…

At the recent hybrid 7th ICC Asia-Pacific Conference on International Arbitration (the “Conference”), a palpable sense of happiness and community resonated throughout the day.  Mr Justin D’Agostino (Global CEO, Herbert Smith Freehills, Hong Kong) moderated the first panel discussion in a quick fire manner on recent arbitration developments in the Asia-Pacific region with leading practitioners…

 In August 2021, the Indian Supreme Court (‘Court’) in Amazon v. Future found an emergency award rendered in an arbitration seated in India (New Delhi) to be enforceable as if it were an interim order of an arbitral tribunal under Section 17(1) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act (“Act”). The Court also found that such…

Recently the Supreme Court of India in Amazon.com NV Investment Holdings Inc. v. Future Retail Ltd, (“Amazon v. Future”) took a progressive step by enforcing an emergency order/award rendered by an emergency arbitral tribunal appointed by Singapore International Arbitration Centre (“SIAC”). The Court held that the term ‘arbitral tribunal’ contained in section 17 of the…

The institution of emergency arbitration (EA), in general, and its usage in investment treaty-based disputes, in particular, is a relatively new procedural tool. In investment disputes, EA has reportedly been carried out in practice only under the Rules of the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (the “SCC Rules”). Conducting EA proceedings in…

Although Taiwan’s legislative and judicial practices already conform to the spirit of the New York Convention (“Convention”) and the Model Law, it appears that non-Taiwanese parties nevertheless remain hesitant to arbitrate in Taiwan. The necessity of becoming a Model Law jurisdiction arises from Taiwan’s inability to accede to the New York Convention. Hence an institutional…

In 2019, Mainland China and Hong Kong entered into a groundbreaking bilateral arrangement regarding interim measures for arbitration, i.e., Arrangement Concerning Mutual Assistance in Court-ordered Interim Measures in Aid of Arbitral Proceedings by the Courts of the Mainland and of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (the “Arrangement”).1)Thanks to Lingming Xu for his contribution to…

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,…

At the dawn of the New Year, following their adoption in November 2020, the revised DIFC-LCIA Rules of Arbitration (the “2021 DIFC-LCIA Rules”) have now entered into force with effect from 1st January 2021. Readers of this blog will recognise the DIFC-LCIA as the free zone sister organization of the London Court of Arbitration (LCIA)…

Introduction An emergency by definition is a “sudden serious and dangerous event” that requires “immediate action”. For instance, shareholder A needs to prevent shareholder B from publicizing confidential information that will negatively affect the share price. Shareholder A finds herself in an emergency situation and needs to act immediately. According to a recent decision of…

Competitive tendering for construction and engineering contracts is an essential element of business for the industry. Huge expenditure is devoted to public infrastructure projects and effective competition is essential to achieve value for money and appropriate use of public funds. The World Bank estimates that Governments worldwide spend US$9.5 trillion in public contracts every year….

It is a generally accepted rule that while state courts have concurrent jurisdiction to hear and decide motions for interim relief prior to the constitution of an arbitral tribunal, they will only maintain such concurrent jurisdiction in appropriate or exceptional cases following such constitution. The ICC Rules are unique in the sense that they apply…

Amid the rise of arbitration-friendly regimes, Malaysia has emerged as one of the preferred seats of arbitration in Asia. Several coordinated factors support Malaysia’s emergence as a pro-arbitration jurisdiction. These include significant amendments to the Arbitration Act 2005 (the “Act”), the pro-arbitration position taken by the Malaysian Judiciary, and the rise of the Asian International…

Goethe’s famous journey along the Italian peninsula left humanity a collection of verses that still make him the most notorious German author worldwide. Amongst others, he expressed his fascination for the country in these few lines: “Do you know the land where lemon blossom grows? / Amid dark leaves the golden orange glows. /A gentle…

On 1 March 2019 the Milan Chamber of Arbitration issued its amended Arbitration Rules (the “2019 Rules’”) with the aim of improving “the efficiency and the rapidity of arbitral proceedings [while] ensuring the necessary guarantees.”  This objective follows the current international trend.  Indeed, in the last decade, several arbitral institutions have revised their rules in…

Recently, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia (the “District Court”) put the problem with emergency arbitration front and center: it refused to confirm and enforce an emergency interim arbitration award (the “Emergency Award”) awarded by an emergency arbitrator (the “Emergency Arbitrator”) under Article 6 of the American Arbitration Association’s International Center…

This post covers an interesting discourse during the Singapore International Arbitration Centre’s Summit in New Delhi on 30 and 31 August 2019. In particular, the post focuses on the discussions during Panel Session 1: ‘Masterclass on the use of Institutional Procedures in Arbitration’ held on the second day of the summit. This session was moderated…

Background The ICC Commission on Arbitration has recently published a report on Emergency Arbitrator (“EA”) Proceedings (“Report”) that promises to “offer guidance to users, counsel and EAs to facilitate the use of EA proceedings through increased transparency and predictability”. The Report analyses the 80 cases in which the ICC EA procedures have been used in…

The use of Emergency Arbitrator (“EA”) procedure is not frequently deployed in investment treaty arbitration, compared to its success in the commercial space. Despite calls for caution, three sets of major arbitration rules have promulgated EA procedure for investment disputes, i.e., Arbitration Rules of Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (“SCC Rules”), SIAC Investment Arbitration Rules (“SIAC…

Emergency arbitrator (“EA”) applications are fast gaining popularity among both arbitral institutions and international arbitration users. EA provisions were first introduced in the 2010 SIAC Rules to address the need for emergency interim relief before a tribunal is constituted, and many arbitral institutions have adopted relatively similar EA procedures over the past decade. For example,…

Many arbitration centres trumpet innovativeness as their selling point. One commonly cited proof of innovativeness is ‘software upgrades’, i.e., centres revising rules to introduce new arbitral procedures. These are intended to make arbitration cheaper, faster, and fairer. Introducing New Arbitral Procedures – First Movers New procedures introduced over the past decade include emergency arbitration (“EA“),…

Last year, I was appointed by Beijing Arbitration Commission (“BAC”) as the emergency arbitrator in an emergency arbitrator proceeding (“EA proceeding”), the first EA proceeding ever requested by the claimant in mainland China. Since the entire arbitration procedure has recently been concluded, I am delighted to share some of my thoughts on how to conduct…