This year’s 36th Annual ITA Workshop (held in Austin, Texas on June 19-21, 2024) did exactly what it said on the tin: It provided the audience with truly “Global Perspectives on Due Process in International Arbitration.” Co-chaired by Christian Leathley, Anne Véronique Schlaepfer, and Prof. Thomas J. Stipanowich, the ITA Annual Workshop looked at due…
Since 2019, a multilateral instrument on investor-State dispute settlement (“ISDS”) reform (“MIIR”) has been under discussion by UNCITRAL Working Group III (“WGIII”) as a potential mechanism for implementing a suite of reforms to ISDS. The MIIR is envisaged to serve as the framework by which States may apply various innovative features in their investment disputes….
Emotion AI, also known as affective computing, is a specialized field within artificial intelligence that recognizes and interprets human emotions. This is primarily achieved through analyzing facial expressions, voice patterns, and choice of words. Having found applications in various domains such as health and defense, the market for emotion AI is experiencing substantial growth, currently…
On 11 April 2024, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (“Court”) issued its decision in Ballantry Construction Management Inc. v GR (CAN) Investment Co. Ltd., arising from an application to enforce two arbitration awards filed by Ballantry Construction Management (the “Applicant”). The Respondent in this application, Investment Co. Ltd, sought an order setting aside the awards…
On 27 June 2024, the United Kingdom (“UK”) ratified the Convention of 2 July 2019 on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Civil or Commercial Matters (“2019 Hague Convention” or “Convention”), with 1 July 2025 being the expected date of its entry into force in England and Wales. This blog post shall first…
Intellectual property (“IP“) rights are becoming increasingly valuable assets for businesses, especially for sectors like technology and life sciences. These rights can be key to a business’ success. While IP disputes have traditionally been litigated, there has been a notable shift toward ADR, including arbitration. For example, the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center, which specializes…
The advantages of exclusive jurisdiction agreements (“EJAs”) are well known; chiefly, that of knowing where a party can sue and be sued. In Brazil, EJAs are widely used in both cross border litigation and in the context of domestic contractual relations. Even in contracts providing for arbitration, it is typical for sophisticated parties to agree…
“Small is Beautiful”, a collection of essays by the economist E. F. Schumacher, was published first in 1973, more than 50 years ago. Schumacher’s basic thesis was that the latest, shiniest or most complex technology was not necessarily the best option for developing countries. Instead, he argued in favor of a practical, more “people-centric” approach,…
Non-disputing Party submissions (“NDPs”) have been a prominent part of the U.S. investor-State dispute settlement (“ISDS”) practice over the last twenty-five years, with an uptick in the number of recent filings. With almost a hundred NDPs filed in investment arbitrations to date (not including oral submissions, which have become a more regular practice), NDPs have…
The confidentiality of arbitrations seated in England is long-established in English law. In the absence of an express agreement to dispense with confidentiality, English law recognises an implied obligation on parties and arbitrators to maintain the confidentiality of the hearing, the award and other materials produced in the proceedings (Dolling-Baker v Merrett [1990] 1 WLR…
On 26 July 2024, the Russian Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling (the “Ruling”) outlining a novel stance on the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards. This jurisprudential shift, which is decidedly not pro-arbitration, erects new barriers for persons domiciled in countries deemed “hostile” or “unfriendly” by Russia to obtain their consideration in the…
In Fujitsu Semiconductor Ltd. v. Cypress Semiconductor Corp., No. 22-mc-80313-VKD, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 97717 (N.D. Cal. June 5, 2023), the court ruled that arbitration was proper for the parties. The court found that the parties’ arbitration clause clearly delegated power to the arbitrators to decide on the question of arbitrability, and thus, it was…
Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) is the buzzword of the day. It has crept into every pore of society, and arbitration has not evaded this trend. The main question raised by commentators and the public is whether AI will render human involvement obsolete, or at least reduce it to a bare minimum. In the context of arbitration,…
Ethiopia has been on the pursuit of market liberalization in an effort to boost economic growth. We have been witnessing a wave of new laws in Ethiopia with significant implications to a market that has long been closed to foreigners. In April 2024, a law passed by the Investment Authority opened the import, wholesale, retail…
On 12 July 2024, the Dutch Supreme Court (the “Supreme Court”) rendered its much anticipated decision on whether clauses providing for mediation as a procedural step before arbitration (or court litigation) are binding upon the parties, requiring an arbitral tribunal (or court) to decline jurisdiction to hear the case or, at least, requiring a stay…
The recent decision by the Bahrain Court of Cassation (“COC”) in Case No. 31 of 2023, issued on 8 January 2024 (“COC Judgment”), marks a significant development in the application of arbitration clauses to non-signatories for Bahrain-seated arbitrations. The case centred on the interpretation of an arbitration clause in a sub-subcontract (“Sub-Subcontract”) and its applicability…
What happens when an arbitrator refuses to answer fundamental questions about their impartiality that only they can address? Questions like, “Have you received any promises or gifts from any of the parties: Ms Aphrodite, Ms Hera or Ms Athena?” or even “Do you have any interest in or connection to Ms Helen, a person associated…
We are happy to inform you that the latest issue of the journal is now available and includes the following contributions: Markus Burgstaller & Dmytro Galagan, Contributory Fault in International Investment Arbitration As a general rule, if a state commits a wrongful act, it is under an obligation to make full reparation for the…
The Institute of Transnational Arbitration (ITA), in collaboration with the ITA Board of Reporters, is happy to inform you that the latest ITA Arbitration Report was published: a free email subscription service available at KluwerArbitration.com delivering timely reports on awards, cases, legislation, and current developments from over 60 countries and 12 institutions. To get your free subscription to the…
Through Ruling No. 3232-19-EP/24, Ecuador’s Constitutional Court (“Court”) settled a long-standing discussion and confirmed that recognition prior to the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards is an unreasonable requirement in light of the Ecuadorian legal system. In this post, we describe the factual background of the Court’s ruling and examine the procedural issues underlying the recent…
In the case of Sharp Corp Ltd v Viterra BV (formerly known as Glencore Agriculture BV [2024] UKSC 14, the UK Supreme Court has decided the proper measure of damages under the Grain and Feed Trade Association (“Gafta”) default clause and reaffirmed the interpretation of section 69 of the Arbitration Act 1996 (“AA 1996”). Whilst…
We are happy to inform you that the latest issue of the journal is now available and includes the following contributions: Klaus Peter Berger, The UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts as a System of Transnational Contract Law: Two Recent Arbitral Awards Are the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) Principles…
The Supreme Court of India in Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. vs Afcons Gunanusa JV ruled that the unilateral determination of arbitrators’ fees contradicts the fundamental principle of party autonomy. Decisions such as this one raise important questions such as: What is a reasonable fee for an arbitrator? How should these fees be determined…
We are happy to inform you that the latest issue of the journal is now available and includes the following contributions: Adam Tahsin & Marius B. Gass, Codification, Convenience, and the Common Law: The Rationales Underpinning the Law Commission’s Proposed Reforms to the English Arbitration Act 1996 The Arbitration Act 1996 has regulated arbitrations…
