After a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the much-anticipated third ICC Kuwait Arbitration Day took place at the heart of Kuwait in the Burj Al Shaya Building on 5 October 2023, organised by the ICC in collaboration with Al Tamimi & Company. Following the success of the inaugural ICC Kuwait Arbitration Day conference in…
In a new chapter of Ecuador’s backlash to the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) system saga, the Constitutional Court of Ecuador (Court) declared Art. 15.20 of the Ecuador-Costa Rica FTA (FTA, Treaty) unconstitutional. This provision provides for ICSID or UNCITRAL arbitration in case of violation of the substantive protections accorded to foreign investors in the Treaty…
On 6 September 2023, the Law Commission of England and Wales issued its final report and draft Bill proposing amendments to the Arbitration Act 1996 (the Act). In this post we focus on the Law Commission’s recommendations regarding jurisdictional challenges in respect of English-seated arbitrations and in particular how its two recommendations (assuming that they…
The Philippine Supreme Court recently issued a decision in Maynilad Water Services, Inc., v. National Water and Resources Board, et al., where the Court ruled that (1) disputes concerning changes in water rates charged to consumers are arbitrable and that (2) arbitral awards that would be injurious to the public at large cannot be enforced…
On October 2-4, 2023, the Atlanta International Arbitration Society (“AtlAS”) hosted its 12th Annual Conference, in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Attendees from around the nation were treated to engaging, collaborative discussions and panels organized by AtlAS, the Institute for Transnational Arbitration (“ITA”), and the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”). Christopher Smith (Senior Associate, King & Spalding LLP…
On October 17, the second day of Hong Kong Arbitration Week 2023, Davis Polk hosted a panel discussion entitled “Investor Information Rights: All Bark and No Bite? Managing Their Effectiveness”. The panel considered a hypothetical case study covering the life cycle of an equity investment into a renewable energy company and explored the legal and…
On the third day of Hong Kong Arbitration Week 2023, the ADR in Asia Conference, the flagship event of the Hong Kong Arbitration Week, hosted a panel discussion on the Hong Kong Outcome Related Fee Structures for Arbitration (“ORFSA”) regime. The panel followed on from last year’s panel introducing ORFSA and explored updates to the…
On the second day of Hong Kong Arbitration Week 2023, the ICC International Court of Arbitration (ICC) and the International Chamber of Commerce – Hong Kong (ICC-HK) hosted an in-person event on “Challenges of the 21st Century: Regulation of Use of AI in Dispute Resolution and Making ADR Work.” The event explored the appropriate techniques…
For the sixth year, our Blog is providing live coverage of Hong Kong Arbitration Week. We are privileged to kick off with a contribution from Dr. Ling Yang, Deputy Secretary-General of HKIAC and Chief Representative of the Shanghai Office. Over the years, dispute resolution (especially, arbitration) in Hong Kong has witnessed great openness, professionalism,…
On 29 September 2023, the United Arab Emirates (“UAE”)’s recently published Federal Law No. 15 of 2023 (“Amendment Law”) entered into force, effectively amending Federal Law No. 6 of 2018 On Arbitration (“2018 Arbitration Law”) that was adopted a mere five years earlier. The 2018 Arbitration Law was itself a long-awaited and significant rehaul of…
On 10 October 2023, Corrs Chambers Westgarth hosted a panel discussion on the topic of “The next new variant? Arbitration in the healthcare and life sciences sector” as part of Australian Arbitration Week. The panel was moderated by Cara North of Corrs Chambers Westgarth and comprised: The Honourable Dr Annabelle Bennett AC SC, retired judge…
The Honourable Wayne Martin AC KC is an arbitrator, mediator, and former Chief Justice of Western Australia (2006-2018). As Chief Justice, Mr Martin was a notable pioneer, particularly for his creation of the Supreme Court of Western Australia’s Arbitration List. Prior to becoming Chief Justice, Mr Martin was a senior member of the Western Australian…
The pending NAFTA-based investor-State dispute settlement case Einarsson v. Canada has been noteworthy for matters of both procedure and substance. The claimants are a father and two sons, all holding US citizenship, and their Canadian-incorporated company, Geophysical Services Incorporated (GSI). They claim that by violating copyright and trade secret protections of GSI’s seismic data, which…
The UK Law Commission recently proposed drastic reform to section 67 of the English Arbitration Act 1996 that deals with the challenge of an award on the ground of lack of substantive jurisdiction in an English seated arbitration. The Law Commission’s First Consultation Paper published in September 2022 initially recommended the challenge under section 67…
The Istanbul Arbitration Centre’s (the Centre) inception, driven by the Turkish Government’s ambition to elevate Istanbul as a global financial centre, presents a compelling case for legal scrutiny. This blog post seeks to unravel the intricate web of legal complexities surrounding the Centre’s statutory foundation, organisational structure, and financial framework, alongside the potential attribution of…
The rapid growth of international arbitration in the Asia-Pacific has sparked many discussions about how different cultural practices and legal traditions impact advocacy in cross-border disputes (see, for example, Global Arbitration Review’s The Guide to Advocacy). On 3 August 2023, ACICA45 and King & Wood Mallesons in Sydney hosted a session titled “Clash of Cultures…
Following the morning session which explored the geopolitics of international arbitration, the next generation of dispute resolution and the freshly-minted draft SIAC Rules (see Part 1), the afternoon session probed into regional and topical dimensions of international arbitration through six technologically-driven and interactive panel discussions. I. Regional Developments, Trends & Forecasts Illuminating Top…
The Singapore International Arbitration Centre (“SIAC”) held the SIAC Symposium, its flagship conference, during the Singapore Convention Week on 28 August 2023. The SIAC Symposium featured a conversation with Minister K Shanmugam, SC (Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law, Singapore) and a plenary address by Justice Judith Prakash (Justice of the Court of…
In 2010, the Supreme People’s Court of the People’s Republic of China (the “SPC”) issued the Provisions of the Supreme People’s Court on Case Guidance (the “Provisions”). The Provisions are widely considered to establish a unique case guidance system in China, under which courts at all levels should refer to the selected guiding cases when…
Efforts to promote diversity in arbitration continue to garner awareness and support from arbitral institutions, legal practitioners, experts, and the arbitration community in general (see e.g., here and here). Unconscious bias is a significant barrier to achieving greater diversity and can hinder opportunities, progression, and careers. It is often tricky to address because, as its…
On 17 January 2023, the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (“Timor-Leste”) became the 172nd country to accede to the United Nations Convention on Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards 1958 (the “New York Convention”)1)United Nations, Timor-Leste accedes to Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, https://unis.unvienna.org/unis/en/pressrels/2023/unisl339.html.. Thereafter, in accordance with the convention’s…
The São Paulo Court of Appeals (“TJSP or “Court”) recently annulled a quantum arbitral award and referred the case back to the arbitral tribunal because one of the three arbitrators had failed to issue a dissenting opinion. The Court held that the co-arbitrator’s abstention amounted to a failure in the part of the arbitral tribunal…
On July 26, 2023, the Latin American Arbitration Association (ALARB) organized a webinar on New Developments of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA). The discussion was introduced by Claus von Wobeser (Von Wobeser y Sierra, México) and led by Sandra González (Ferrere, Uruguay) and Juan Manuel Marchán (PBP, Ecuador), who posed several topics that were…
Making an awkward legislative step, the Hungarian legislator introduced a new ground for annulling construction arbitration awards from 5 June 2023, which applies where arbitrators fail to deliberate the opinion of a domestic expert body. While many commentators have criticised this amendment because of its potential retroactive effect and its disharmony with the current international…
