Independence and Impartiality

Independence and Impartiality, Madrid International Arbitration Center Rules, Spain, Spanish Arbitration Law

(BMA Abogados) and / /Leave a comment

Enforcing standards on the independence and impartiality of arbitrators requires provisions allowing parties to challenge arbitrators. Traditionally, in jurisdictions that have based their provisions on the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration (but not only these), such provisions have allowed parties to challenge arbitrators where they have ‘justifiable doubts’ as to the arbitrator’s impartiality…

ICSID Arbitration, Independence and Impartiality, United States

(Broemer & Associates)/ /Leave a comment

In the second half of 2020 there have been two heavily discussed challenges to arbitration awards stemming from an arbitrator’s nondisclosure. The more recent, OOGC America, L.L.C. v. Chesapeake Exploration, L.L.C, was an appeal in the U.S. Fifth Circuit. The other, Eiser Infrastructure Limited and Energia Solar Luxemburg S.À.R.L. v. Kingdom of Spain, was heard…

Disclosure, Independence and Impartiality, International Commercial Arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Working Group III, WTO

/ /Leave a comment

The strength of any dispute settlement mechanism will depend upon its consistency with the requirements of independence and impartiality. Disclosures made by adjudicators prior to adjudicating a dispute, and challenges raised against adjudicators during the course of dispute settlement, target a perceived absence of independence or impartiality. The purpose of this post is to juxtapose…

Code of Conduct, Conflicts of interest, Disclosure, ICSID, Independence and Impartiality, ISDS, UNCITRAL, Working Group III

(Richmond School of Law)/ /1 Comment
Institute for Transnational Arbitration (ITA)

On May 1, 2020, the Secretariats of ICSID and UNCITRAL released the first draft of the Code of Conduct for Adjudicators in Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS). I had the privilege of working extensively on the drafting of the Code as a Scholar in Residence at ICSID, and I think this is an important development in…

European Court of Human Rights, Independence and Impartiality, Sport arbitration, Turkey

, (Archipel)/ /Leave a comment

The findings of the recent decision Ali Riza et al. v. Turkey (“Riza“) of the European Court of Human Rights (“ECtHR“) dated 28 January 2020, when read in conjunction with the ECtHR’s previous decision Mutu and Pechstein v. Switzerland (“Mutu-Pechstein“) dated 2 October 2018 (which concluded the “Pechstein Saga”), could potentially have an impact on…

Corruption, Document Production, France, French Supreme Court, Independence and Impartiality, International arbitration, Jurisdiction of the arbitral tribunal, Paris Court of Appeal, Set aside an arbitral award, State Immunity

(Terrien Avocat)/ /Leave a comment

Although some might have considered 2019 a bit “lackluster”,1)Th. Clay, Panorama – Arbitrage et modes alternatifs de règlement des litiges: novembre 2018-décembre 2019, Dalloz, 26 December 2019. a number of noteworthy decisions by the Paris Court of Appeal and French Supreme Court have come to refine on the now well-established French case law on international…

Arbitrator Bias, Arbitrators, Austria, Impartiality, Independence and Impartiality, Public Policy, Revision of Award, Set aside an arbitral award, Switzerland

(ARP Attorneys)/ /Leave a comment

Like virtually all arbitration laws, the Austrian Arbitration Act is silent on whether the lack of impartiality and independence of an arbitrator may be invoked for the first time in setting aside proceedings in cases where a party becomes aware of the relevant circumstances only after the award was rendered. The Austrian Supreme Court has,…

Georgia, Impartiality, Independence, Independence and Impartiality, Institutional Arbitration, Institutional Rules, Interim measures, Unconscious Bias

(Singapore International Dispute Resolution Academy)/ /Leave a comment

Recent legislative developments have shown that Georgia strives to become a hub for dispute resolution in the Caucasus region. The legislative framework on commercial arbitration is now fully tailored to the needs of international commercial arbitration: the law of Georgia on arbitration (the “Law on Arbitration”) is based on the UNCITRAL Model Law on International…

Arbitration, Arbitration Proceedings, Domestic Courts, Enforcement, Extra petita, Good Faith, Independence and Impartiality

(Rihar & Thouvenin Dispute Resolution)/ /Leave a comment

This is the 2nd part of the report highlighting the most significant arbitration related decisions of the Swiss Federal Supreme Court (the “Supreme Court”) issued in 2019.   Ne Eat Arbiter Extra Petita In the decision 4A_294/2019 / 4A_296/2019 of 13 November 2019, the Supreme Court dealt with an extra petita appeal against an ICC-award….

Consent, Court of Arbitration for Sport, Independence and Impartiality, Sport arbitration

(Central European University)/ /Leave a comment

The recent public hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (‘CAS’) involving the World Anti-Doping Agency (‘WADA’) on one side, and the Chinese swimmer Sun Yang and the Federation Internationale de Natation (‘FINA’) on the other, has been plagued with controversies. In the anticipation of the award (expected in early 2020), this seems to…

Arbitral Award, Arbitrators, conflict of interest, Enforceability, Experts, Germany, Independence and Impartiality

, (Hanefeld Rechtsanwälte)/ /1 Comment

Arbitrators and tribunal-appointed experts are at all times obliged to disclose any and all circumstances that might give rise to doubts as to their impartiality and independence. This is one of the most fundamental duties to safeguard the legitimacy of arbitration. Yet, what are the consequences if they fail to do so? This question has…

Arbitrator Challenges, ICSID Convention, Independence and Impartiality, Investor-State arbitration, UNCITRAL, Working Group III

/ /Leave a comment

The ICSID Rules Amendment Project Marking the latest step in its procedural rules overhaul, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID”) Secretariat released the third Working Paper on Proposals for the ICSID Arbitration Rules Amendments in late August 2019 (“WP3”). It is safe to say that the revisions of the ICSID Rules arrive…

Arbitrators, Duty to Disclose, Independence and Impartiality, Peru

(CML Arbitration)/ /Leave a comment

The arbitrator’s duty of disclosure is often subject to misunderstandings, particularly in regards to its content and scope, as well as its relationship with the independence and impartiality of the arbitrator. That is why for almost a decade I have been raising in my publications, both on international commercial arbitration and investment arbitration, various criteria…

Arbitrators, Independence and Impartiality, India

, (Nishith Desai) and (Trilegal)/ /Leave a comment
YSIAC

Independence and impartiality of arbitrators are the hallmarks of arbitration. The amendments to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996 (“Act”) in 2015, which adopted the international best practices from the International Bar Association Guidelines on Conflict of Interest (“IBA Guidelines”), aimed to bolster not only the neutrality of arbitrators, but also the perception of neutrality….

Arbitration, Arbitration Proceedings, Arbitrators, IBA, IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest, Independence and Impartiality

(Schellenberg Wittmer Ltd, Switzerland)/ /Leave a comment
Schellenberg Wittmer

Comments on the Decision of the Paris Court of Appeal Dated 27 March 20181)CA Paris, Pôle 1, Chambre 1, 27 mars 2018, n°16/09386. Neither the author nor Schellenberg Wittmer was personally involved in any of the cases mentioned in this blog, and all information disclosed is publicly available. The appellant in the case before the…

IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest, Independence and Impartiality, Vivendi

(ILS Law College, Pune, India)/ /1 Comment

Independence and impartiality of an arbitrator form the bedrock of effective and fair legal proceeding. However, there are many requisites to an impartial tribunal such as fair and timely disclosures of potential conflicts by parties and the arbitrators. In this article, I shall explore the critical impact of the professional relationships of an arbitrator’s law…

Conflicts of interest, IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest, Independence and Impartiality, International arbitration, Social media, Social media

/ /2 Comments

Introduction Currently, social network trends are focused on consumer markets, such as the fashion or food industry. The uninterrupted use of smart phones, computers, tablets, Ipod´s, etc. with unlimited internet connection has resulted in us being mere dependent beings on these devices. Social networks are everyday forms of social interaction, defined as a dynamic exchange…

IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest, Independence and Impartiality, Soft Law Instruments

/ /Leave a comment

The IBA Guidelines on Conflict of Interest in International Arbitration (hereafter, Guidelines) have gained widespread legitimacy across jurisdictions and types of arbitrations. The Guidelines lay down General Standards (Part I) and provide Practical Application List (Part II). Its soft law nature is an example of codification by compilation (Part I) and innovation (Part II). The…

Arbitrators, DIAC, Independence and Impartiality, UAE

(Equanimity Arbitration)/ /Leave a comment

Arbitrators have an overarching duty to act fairly and impartially. This is a fundamental aspect of arbitration that arises out of one of the key advantages of the arbitration process, that is, the parties’ abilities to select the tribunal or arbitrator. This duty is commonly enshrined in arbitration laws and institution rules. For example, Article…

Independence and Impartiality, India, neutrality

, / /Leave a comment

It is a fundamental principle in international arbitration that every arbitrator must be and remain independent and impartial of the parties and the dispute The issue of arbitrator independence, impartiality and neutrality has been a frequent source of contention in India. It is particularly rampant in disputes arising out of contracts executed before the amendment…

Annulment, Colombia, Commercial Arbitration, Independence and Impartiality

(FERRERE Abogados)/ /Leave a comment

On July 12, 2017, the Colombian Supreme Court issued a decision on the enforcement of the arbitral award rendered in the ICC case (No. 16088/JFR/CA) Tampico Beverages Inc. v. Productos Naturales de la Sabana S.A. Alquería, seated in Santiago de Chile. The decision provides for an interesting differentiation of the standard of review to be…

Arbitration, Arbitrator's mandate, Arbitrators, Costs, Counsel conduct, IBA Guidelines on Party Representation, ICC, ICSID, Independence and Impartiality, LCIA Arbitration, New York Convention

(White & Case LLP)/ /1 Comment
Institute for Transnational Arbitration (ITA)

The 29th Annual Workshop of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration (“ITA”), which took place on 14-15 June 2017 in Dallas, focused on a timely subject of much importance to the future of international arbitration, namely, the “Challenges to the Legitimacy of International Arbitration.” The event was co-chaired by Caline Mouawad (King & Spalding), Jeremy K….

Arbitration, Confidentiality, Confidentiality and Transparency, Croatia, Independence and Impartiality, International arbitration, Slovenia

(Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia)/ /Leave a comment

The first weeks of 2017 have again seen an exchange between Croatia and Slovenia about the continued work of the Arbitral Tribunal expected to decide this year on the course of the boundary between the two states. The Tribunal – formed under the 2009 Arbitration Agreement – will do so despite Croatia’s decision to terminate…

Arbitral Tribunal, Arbitration, Arbitration Proceedings, Best practices, Commercial Arbitration, Confidentiality, Confidentiality and Transparency, HKIAC, ICC Arbitration, ICCA, ICSID Arbitration, Independence and Impartiality, Institutional Arbitration, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, ISDS, LCIA Arbitration, Powers of the tribunal, Procedure, SCC Rules, Secretary of the Arbitral Tribunal, SIAC, Singapore International Arbitration Centre, Tribunal Secretary, Uncategorized

, , (Clifford Chance) and (Clifford Chance Asia)/ /Leave a comment

“Help! I need somebody Help! Not just anybody Help! You know I need someone, help … And now my life has changed in oh so many ways, My independence seems to vanish in the haze …” Help raises a question of need, but does it lead to a loss of the fundamental decision-making power vested…