Jurisdiction

2020 In Review, Europe, ICC Rules, Investment Arbitration, LCIA Rules, Legislation, Ordre Public, Right to be heard, Yukos

(Brunel University London) and / /Leave a comment

Although the Old Continent has suffered tremendously at the hands of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world of arbitration still managed to find a way to keep on going. In this post, we are going to provide an overview of the most pivotal arbitration developments that occurred on the European soil in 2020. Among others, these…

Best practices, Egypt, Estoppel, Party Representation, Remote hearings, Revision of Award

(Zulficar & Partners)/ /Leave a comment

On 27 October 2020, the Egyptian Court of Cassation (“Court”) rendered a ground-breaking judgment that is demonstrative of the Court’s appreciation of ongoing global developments in the field of arbitration (a courtesy translation prepared by the author of this post is available here). The case pertains to a domestic construction dispute under a subcontract that…

Arbitration Institutions and Rules, Islamic Finance Disputes, Malaysia

(Asian International Arbitration Centre)/ /Leave a comment
Asian International Arbitration Centre (AIAC)

Aside from providing great entertainment, films such as Wall Street and The Big Short have taught us that there are numerous complex financial products which are regularly created within the banking and finance industry that could give rise to disputes. Traditionally, litigation has been the mode of choice for resolving banking and finance disputes. However,…

2020 In Review, Appellate Court, Burden of proof, Colombia, Corruption, Dominican Republic, International Investment Arbitration, Interpretation, Latin America, Lava Jato, Mexico, Odebrecht investigation, Peru, USMCA, Venezuela

(Locke Lord LLP)/ /Leave a comment

In 2020, we witnessed a number of interesting developments in the field of investment arbitration in Latin America. From the entry into force of the United States – Mexico – Canada Agreement (USMCA) signed over a year ago, as well as numerous cases and actions still arising from the Odebrecht scandal that became public back…

Arbitration Act, Arbitration Act 1996, Foreign seat, India

/ /Leave a comment

On 3 November 2020, the Gujarat High Court rendered a decision in GE Power Conversion India Private Limited v. PASL Wind Solutions Private Limited where it held that while two Indian parties can choose a foreign seat of arbitration, they would not be entitled to seek interim measures from Indian courts under section 9 of…

2020 In Review, Africa, Arbitration, Arbitration Institutions and Rules, Commercial Arbitration, New York Convention

(Equanimity Arbitration) and (University of Oxford)/ /Leave a comment

We initiate our traditional Year in review series of 2020 with a retrospective view of the reported developments in the Sub-Saharan Africa. In this post, we aim at giving you a quick look back to some of our most impactful publications in 2020 from this geographical area, with a focus on the commercial arbitration developments…

Anti-suit injunction, Interim measures, UK

(Herbert Smith Freehills LLP)/ /Leave a comment
Herbert Smith Freehills

It is important for parties to arbitration agreements to understand to what extent they might be able to obtain effective interim relief from the courts. While parties may provide in their arbitration agreement, whether through express drafting or (more often) by incorporation of institutional rules, that the parties shall be permitted to seek interim relief…

Belgium, CJEU, ECT Modernisation, Energy Charter Treaty, Intra-EU ISDS, Investment Arbitration

, (Linklaters)/ /Leave a comment

On 3 December 2020, Belgium announced the submission of a request to the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) for an opinion on whether the intra-European application of the arbitration provisions of the future modernised Energy Charter Treaty (“ECT”) are compatible with the EU Treaties. Belgium indicated that the purpose of its request…

Amendment, Arbitration Act, Arbitration Act 1996, Enforcement, India

(MIDS Geneva)/ /Leave a comment

In a bid to make its legal regime international arbitration-friendly, India has repeatedly amended its principal legislation, i.e. the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (the ‘Act’), over the last five years. The most recent one, the Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 (the ‘2020 Amendment’), came into force on 4 November 2020 seeking “to address…

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…

Belt Road Initiative, China, HKIAC, Hong Kong, Kluwer Podcast, Podcast

(Peter & Kim)/ /Leave a comment

Welcome to the third post in the series of International Law Talk. In this series of podcasts, Wolters Kluwer will bring you the latest news and industry insights from thought leaders and experts in the field of International Arbitration, IP Law, International Tax Law and Competition Law. Here at Kluwer Arbitration Blog, we will highlight…

Apparent bias, Appointment of arbitrators, Bias, Deepwater Horizon, IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest, Impartiality, UK, UK Supreme Court, Unconscious Bias

(WilmerHale)/ /Leave a comment

On 27 November 2020, the U.K. Supreme Court in Halliburton Company v. Chubb Bermuda Insurance Ltd (formerly known as Ace Bermuda Insurance Ltd) [2020] UKSC 48 ruled on the approach under English law to determining whether an arbitrator’s failure to make disclosure of appointments in multiple arbitrations with overlapping subject matter and only one common…

Arbitration institution, Belt Road Initiative, Interviews with Our Editors, Legislation, National Courts, Pakistan

(Law Offices of Kiran N Gore PLLC; The George Washington University Law School) and / /3 Comments

Mr. Rana Sajjad Ahmad, thank you for joining us on the Kluwer Arbitration Blog! We are grateful to have the opportunity to learn more about the Center for International Investment and Commercial Arbitration (CIICA) and your experience with enhancing the role of international arbitration in Pakistan.   Could you briefly introduce yourself to our readers?…

China, Enforcement, Free Trade Zones, Hainan, HIAC, Institutional Rules, Med-Arb

/ /Leave a comment

The designation of Hainan province as a Free Trade Zone (FTZ) in 2018 has sparked a great deal of interest for foreign investors. The proposal for a globally influential free trade port, by the middle of the century, makes Hainan an exciting prospect and a potential venue for new foreign investment. Such a proposal demonstrates…

Enforcement, Foreign arbitral awards, Inter-American Conventions, Jurisdiction, Jurisdiction Clause, New York, Place of arbitration, United States

(Columbia Law School), (Rivero Mestre LLP), and (Nishith Desai Associates)/ /2 Comments

In this post, we discuss some of the challenges created by the personal jurisdiction requirements under U.S. law (explained below) in enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in the U.S. We also delve into details of hurdles posed by the implementation of the personal jurisdiction standard as enunciated in Daimler AG v. Bauman to recognition and…

Armed Conflict, Extraterritorial Jurisdiction, Ukraine

/ /Leave a comment

The effect on investment protection stemming from Russia’s annexation, and therefore effective control over Crimea, has been a hot topic since 2014. Meanwhile, Ukraine has dealt with an armed conflict in Eastern Ukraine since April 2014 as a result of Russian expansionist maneuvers. Ukraine is now left with the difficult task to, on the one…

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…

Free Trade Agreements, UK

/ /Leave a comment

Many of the free trade agreements that the UK has signed or that are currently under negotiation include a requirement for the parties to create rosters of individuals who could act as arbitrators for disputes launched under the state-to-state dispute settlement mechanisms within those agreements. The Department for International Trade (DIT) is seeking to appoint…

Emergency Arbitrator, ICC Rules, Israel

, (Gornitzky & Co)/ /Leave a comment

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…

Arbitration Agreement, Jurisdiction, Pakistan

(Fazleghani Advocates)/ /Leave a comment

In Pakistan, the law governing international arbitrations resulting in a foreign award is the Recognition and Enforcement (Arbitration Agreements and Foreign Arbitral Awards) Act, 2011 (“2011 Act”). To those who are unfamiliar with the 2011 Act, it may come as a surprise that it does not provide any remedy to an applicant challenging the arbitration…

Arbitration, Arbitration Agreements, Investment Arbitration, Investment law, Investment Treaties, MENA, Middle East, Multilateral Investment Treaties, United Arab Emirates

(Allen & Overy LLP)/ /Leave a comment

The announcement on 13 August 2020 of a rapprochement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (‘UAE’) took the world by surprise. Seasoned regional observers noted quiet cooperation and cross-border transactions over the past few years, but few expected these covert relationships to burst into public view so fully and wholeheartedly. The joint declaration, soon…

COVID-19, Due process, Enforcement, Hearings, India, Virtual hearings, Witness

/ /Leave a comment
Young ICCA

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, virtual witness testimonies were prevalent in specific instances, such as when witnesses could not reach the venue because of illness. Article 8.1 of IBA Rules on Taking of Evidence in International Arbitration permits virtual testimony only at the discretion of the tribunal. The Commentary on the Rules establishes that the tribunal’s…

Arbitration, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Diversity, Efficiency, Environment, Technology, Virtual hearings

(Association ARBITRI) and (Sudžuka & Co. d.o.o.)/ /Leave a comment

The Sixth Sarajevo Arbitration Day conference took place on 23 October 2020 and it was dedicated to the opportunities to adopt positive arbitration practices amidst the challenges created by the Covid-19 pandemic. This annual conference organized by the Association ARBITRI took place online for the first time and gathered legal practitioners from all over the…

Arbitral Award, Arbitration Award, Dissenting opinions, Germany

, (Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP)/ /Leave a comment
Young ICCA

A one paragraph obiter dictum in an annulment decision rendered by the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court (the “Court”) on 16 January 2020 (26 Sch 14/18) reignited an old debate: are dissenting opinions in German arbitration proceedings permissible? From an international perspective, dissenting opinions in arbitral awards are by no means unusual.  That is why it…