Arbitration Act 1996, Arbitration Agreement, Arbitration clause, England, English Arbitration Act, English courts, English Law, Helice Leasing, LCIA Rules

, , (Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP)/ /Leave a comment

In a recent High Court case, it was held that a reference in a contract to the “court” did not mean a court at all but meant instead – perhaps alarmingly – arbitration. This decision in Helice Leasing S.A.S. v PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) TbK [2021] EWHC 99 (Comm) may be a cause of concern…

Construction arbitration, Costs, Costs in arbitral proceedings, Middle East

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Herbert Smith Freehills

Each of the major arbitral institutions requires that parties furnish some form of advance on costs before an arbitration can proceed. The advance on costs is a deposit paid by the parties to cover fees and expenses of the tribunal and the institution’s administrative expenses (“Advance”). Whilst payment of an Advance is often perceived as…

Brazil, Public Entities, Shareholders Arbitration, United States Courts

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The recent crisis between the Brazilian president Jair Messias Bolsonaro and the Brazilian national oil company Petrobras may result in a wave of investors’ claims submitted to arbitration against the Brazilian Federal Government for abuse of controlling power and breach of fiduciary duties under the Brazilian Companies Act 1976. During a live broadcast on February…

Arbitration, Arbitration Institutions and Rules

(The Arbitration Institute of the Finland Chamber of Commerce)/ /3 Comments
Finland Arbitration Institute (FAI)

In recent years the arbitration community has embraced digitalisation. Already before the pandemic we were exploring the use of legal tech and even thinking of how artificial intelligence would profoundly change our business and our profession. Most likely the form and content of the services we provide will be different in the future due to…

Investor-State arbitration, ISDS, SCOTUS, United States, United States Courts

(Hecht Partners LLP)/ /3 Comments

Investor-state international arbitration may provide a way forward for Survivors and their heirs after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision denying claims in two restitution cases regarding Holocaust-era stolen property:  Federal Republic of Germany v. Philipp (for return of Medieval art stolen by the Nazis) along with the companion case of Republic of Hungary v. Simon…

ADGM, UAE

(Blanke Arbitration LLC)/ /Leave a comment

The 2015 Arbitration Regulations of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (“ADGM”), the Abu Dhabi-based financial free zone, (the “2015 ADGM Arbitration Regulations”) (consolidated text The Amendment focuses on a number of areas to enhance the efficient operation of the 2015 ADGM Arbitration Regulations, including in particular a clarification of the scope of an arbitration agreement…

Arbitration Institutions and Rules, FAI, Finland

(The Arbitration Institute of the Finland Chamber of Commerce)/ /1 Comment
Finland Arbitration Institute (FAI)

When starting as the secretary general of the Finland Arbitration Institute (FAI) almost two years ago I wanted to properly understand what it is that we do and how we can reach our full potential in it. I had been a part of the arbitration community, arbitrating, teaching and doing research for long enough to…

Code of Conduct, conflict of interest, Disclosure, Ethics, ISDS, Transparency, Working Group III

(Association ARBITRI)/ /Leave a comment

“To disclose or not to disclose?” no longer seems to be a question for international arbitrators. The narrative and policy space surrounding the independence and impartiality of international arbitrators has been consistently driven towards maximum disclosure obligations. This is evidenced in recent legal instruments seemingly blurring the lines between the recognized ethical standards for arbitrators,…

Anti-suit injunction, France, Germany, International arbitration

(Humboldt University of Berlin)/ /3 Comments

For more than a decade, it was evident that anti-suit injunctions are not permitted in the European Union. Recently, however, there have been developments that could signal the beginning of a new dawn. In late 2019, the Higher Regional Court Munich confirmed the first anti-anti-suit injunction in German history. The court prohibited Continental from further…

CAS arbitration, Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland, Impartiality, Social media

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Regardless of whether you are a sports enthusiast, the Swiss Federal Tribunal’s recent revision of the CAS award in WADA v. Sun Yang is unlikely to have escaped your attention. In its judgment of 22 December 2020 (4A_318/2020), the Swiss Federal Tribunal referred the Chinese swimmer’s case back to CAS, overturning an eight-year ban. A…

Interim measures, Public Policy, Sanctions, Ukraine

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There is still a common misconception among foreign arbitration practitioners that in post-soviet countries the courts often tend to refuse recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards based on public policy. Is this characterisation fair with respect to Ukraine? There have been five recent cases in Ukraine on violation of public policy, with some landmark decisions…

Brexit, Free Trade Agreements, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Japan, Reform

and (Concepción Global, PLLC, Universidad Complutense de Madrid)/ /1 Comment

On 23 October 2020, Japan and the United Kingdom (UK) signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the agreement coming into force on 1 January 2021. This signifies a historic landmark as the UK’s first trade deal as an independent nation, and represents a key milestone for international trade in a post-Brexit UK. The…

Brazil, Brazilian Arbitration Act, Clarifications, Emergency Measure, Infra petita, Supplementary Award

(Manesco, Ramires, Perez, Azevedo Marques Sociedade de Advogados)/ /Leave a comment

Five years ago, the Brazilian Arbitration Act (Law No. 9,307/96 or BAA) was amended by the Law No. 13,129/2015. Law No. 13,129/2015 repealed the item V of Article 32 of the BAA which provided for the annulment of an arbitral award when it does not address the entire dispute submitted to arbitration (infra petita award)….

2020 In Review, Amendment, Anti-arbitration Injunction, Arbitrability, BIT, Enforcement, Fraud, India, kompetenz-kompetenz, Limitation period, Seat of the arbitration, Venue

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The “2019 in Review: India” started with a quote from Jeff Bezos that the 21st century belongs to India. Little did we know then that, one year later, Jeff Bezos’ Amazon would be fighting tooth and nail in a SIAC arbitration and related litigation in the Indian courts to claim a share of the burgeoning…

Arbitrator Intelligence

(Bocconi University) and (Association ARBITRI)/ /Leave a comment
Arbitrator Intelligence

What is perhaps the greatest source of praise for an arbitrator? A party or lawyer who believes that they lost the case, but has positive things to say about that arbitrator. That is the criteria Arbitrator Intelligence started with to select its Arbitrators of the Year for 2020 and other Distinguished Arbitrators. Intensive debate exists…

Egypt, International arbitration, Investment agreements, ISDS, Nationality

(Riad & Riad; Cairo University School of Law)/ /1 Comment

Egypt has been trying to control the number of investor-state arbitration disputes which has been steeply increasing since 2011 and the Arab Spring movement (see past discussion on the Blog here). To that end, Egypt created alternative out-of-court forums for amicable settlement of existing arbitration cases and worked toward curbing the eruption of new cases…

Ad hoc arbitration, India, Institutional Arbitration, Institutional Rules, Interviews with Our Editors, Mumbai Centre for International Arbitration (MCIA)

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In this installment of Kluwer Arbitration Blog’s “Interview with our Editors”, we highlight India’s position in the field, by speaking with Madhukeshwar Desai and Neeti Sachdeva of Mumbai Centre for International Arbitration (MCIA). Madhukeshwar, its CEO, and Neeti, its Registrar & Secretary-General, jointly present MCIA’s journey since its establishment in 2016. They also discuss how…

Climate change, Energy Charter Treaty, Germany, Investment Arbitration, Legitimate Expectations, Parallel Proceedings

(Herbert Smith Freehills)/ /Leave a comment

Swedish state-owned power energy company Vattenfall operated two nuclear power plants located in Brunsbüttel and Krümmel, Germany. Vattenfall owns a 50% interest in the Krümmel plant, and a 66.6% interest in the Brunsbüttel plant. In August 2011, against the backdrop of the nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan, the German Parliament amended the Act on the…

Arbitration – The International Journal of Arbitration

(General Editor International Journal of Arbitration, Mediation and Dispute Management; Queen Mary University of London), (Queen Mary University of London), (Chartered Institute of Arbitrators), and (Three Crowns)/ /Leave a comment

As we slowly turn the corner of this brutal year, a mixed set of thoughts and reflections come to mind. For a start, one cannot help but feeling a sense of measured optimism that after a vicious tally of human losses worldwide and unprecedented disruption of every single aspect of our social and professional lives…

COVID-19, Enforcement, Investment Arbitration, New York Convention, New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, Public Policy

(Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP/ Katholieke Universiteit Leuven)/ /Leave a comment
Young ICCA

Exceptional times call for exceptional measures. We have all been experiencing a global pandemic for almost a year now. In an era where the legal exception tends to become the mainstream rule, one is left to wonder how far can this reversal of odds go. Is the global public health crisis susceptible to calling into…

Appointment of arbitrators, Arbitrators

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Rising Arbitrators Initiative (RAI)

On 27 January 2021, the Rising Arbitrators Initiative (RAI) hosted the second webinar of its series “The Rising Arbitrator’s Challenge: Navigating the Premise and Perils of Your First Appointment(s)”. The aim of the series of events is to support practitioners who are seeking or tackling their first appointments and each webinar is focused on a…

Arbitration, Arbitration Institutions and Rules, Institutional Rules, International arbitration, PCA, Permanent Court of Arbitration, Space Arbitration

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Nearly a decade ago, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (“PCA”) published its Optional Rules for Arbitration of Disputes Relating to Outer Space Activities (“PCA Outer Space Rules” or “Rules”).  Unlike the five United Nations treaties on outer space, the Rules provide for a voluntary and binding dispute resolution process accessible to all space actors.  Notably,…

Annulment, Constitutional Court, Ecuador, Latin America, Revision of Award

(Tobar ZVS)/ /Leave a comment

I .The Annulment of an Arbitral Award under Ecuadorian Law Pursuant to article 30 of the Arbitration and Mediation Law (AML), arbitral awards are final and binding for the parties. In other words, parties cannot file recourses to challenge an award, with the exception of a clarification or extension petition before the arbitral tribunal. However,…