The global fight against climate change demands a swift transition to cleaner energy sources. Underscoring this urgency, the 28th Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (also known as the “Paris Agreement”) (“COP 28“), held in Dubai in November 2023, called for ambitious goals. At this conference, nearly 200…
On 5 February 2024, the Dubai Court of Cassation (“DCC”) issued a judgment in Commercial Case No. 821/2023 (“DCC Judgment”). It upheld an earlier judgment of the Dubai Court of Appeal (“CoA”) which set aside an arbitration award issued under the ICC Rules of Arbitration 2021 (“ICC Rules 2021”) in part concerning the recovery of…
Columbia Arbitration Day (“CAD”) was held on 1 March 2024 at the Skyline Level of Columbia’s Faculty House. CAD is notable as an entirely student-organized event on the international arbitration calendar. The first panel, moderated by Professor Alejandro Garro (Columbia Law School), aimed to identify an effective toolkit for managing evidence in construction cases, which…
In October 2023, the Law 14,711/2023 was sanctioned, aimed to establish new rules on foreclosures, seizures, mortgages, and transfers of properties to settle debts, by amending certain sections of Law 8,935/1994 (which regulates notary and registration services). Some argue that the inclusion of a legal provision authorizing public notaries to act as arbitrators had two…
Most of you will be familiar with ChatGPT and some will even be familiar with Midjourney and Stable Diffusion, but the recent launch of another type of Generative AI service has flown under the radar in the wider media as of now. However, it poses some of the most important practical and conceptual questions as…
On January 11, 2024 the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University hosted the sixth annual Schiefelbein Global Dispute Resolution Conference. Like the past iterations of this conference, the program featured top lawyers, mediators, arbitrators, academics, and leaders of arbitration institutions discussing timely issues in international dispute resolution. This blog post recaps…
During the California International Arbitration Week, held in San Francisco, California, on March 11-14, 2024 (full schedule), the Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration (SCIA) presented a panel on U.S.-China commercial dispute resolution. The panelists included Dr. Liu Xiaochun (President, SCIA), Guoyong Huang (Director of the International Cooperation and Development Department, SCIA), Peter Neumann (Arbitrator; Adjunct…
Paris, amidst its annual Arbitration Week in 2024, saw the convergence of arbitration practitioners and enthusiasts at the Hyatt Paris Madeleine for the conference “The Rise of Arbitration in Asia,” a testament to the region’s expanding arbitration influence, convened by Rajah & Tann Asia. The discussion was marked by the presence of distinguished legal professionals,…
In a world where trade tensions and geopolitical pressures are increasingly shaping the landscape of international relations, particularly between the U.S. and China, the panel “Arbitrating in Time of Trade War” brought together a distinguished group of experts to explore the complexities and evolving dynamics of international arbitration. The panel featured insights from Luke Sobota…
As part of 2024 Paris Arbitration Week, Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP hosted a webinar on “Swords and Shields: Navigating Current Trends in Enforcing Arbitral Awards.” The event featured Sebastiano Nessi, Loujaine Kahaleh, and Juan Perla, and was moderated by Geoffroy Lyonnet. The panel examined recent trends in the enforcement of arbitral awards, starting…
On 21 December 2023 the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) handed down its decision in Case C-124/21 P, International Skating Union v. European Commission. The CJEU agreed with the 16 December 2020 judgment of the General Court of the EU (“GCEU”), and with the European Commission in CASE AT. 40208 International Skating…
For several years, the uncertainty of the (un)clean hands principle has been subject to debate due to the diverse approaches taken by arbitral tribunals. However, in September 2023, the tribunal in Glencore Finance (Bermuda) Ltd. v. The Plurinational State of Bolivia (PCA Case No. 2016-39) may have indirectly settled the uncertainty. The case proposes a…
The Territorial Reservation under Article 1(III) of the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, 1958 (“Convention”) presents an interesting conundrum. Despite widespread acceptance of the Convention, the Territorial Reservation continues to be a domestic limitation on the Convention’s applicability. In this post, we analyse how the Territorial Reservation ought…
Hong Kong and Singapore often take the top spots as the preferred arbitral seats in Asia and globally.1)See for instance the 2021 and 2018 Queen Mary University London International Arbitration Surveys. Hong Kong and Singapore rank top three as the most preferred seats in the 2021 survey, and top three in the 2018 survey. These…
On the 7th of March, Wolters Kluwer hosted a webinar to mark the launch of the book Investment Arbitration and Climate Change, edited by Anja Ipp and Annette Magnusson (co-founders of Climate Change Counsel) and published by Wolters Kluwer in January 2024. The webinar featured four of the book’s contributing authors: Caline Mouawad (Partner at…
In an interpretative judgment rendered on 21 February 2024 (“Interpretative Judgment”), the highest court of Bulgaria had the occasion to decide whether, in case of an assignment of rights under a contract, the arbitration agreement contained in the contract is transferred automatically to the assignee so that such arbitration agreement becomes effective and binding in…
In a world where present geopolitical tensions continue to worsen and the current global order continues to show signs of disintegration, sanctions have emerged as a key strategic tool to pressure third countries to comply with their international law obligations and further prevent additional violations of international agreements. With this comes disputes in a myriad…
On 22 December 2023, a Tribunal composed of Prof. Bernard Hanotiau, Prof. Brigitte Stern and Dr. Andrés Rigo Sureda (President) issued a final award (“Award”) in an investment treaty case PCA 2019-15 (“Dispute”), between Worley International Inc. (“Worley” or “Claimant”) and The Republic of Ecuador (“Ecuador” or “Respondent”). The dispute arose in connection with agreements…
South Africa’s evolution into the premier destination for international arbitration in the Southern African Development Community (“SADC“) region exemplifies its commitment to legal modernity, accessibility, and the highest international standards. South African legal jurisprudence has come to enjoy significant influence in an increasingly globalised world where political, economic, social, and legal activities transcend territorial borders….
The Arbitration Foundation of Southern Africa (AFSA) will be hosting the first Johannesburg Arbitration Week (JAW) at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 9 to 11 April 2024. Originally scheduled for March 2020, the event was, of necessity, postponed when COVID-19 swept away all before it. With that aberration now consigned to…
As part of the 2024 Paris Arbitration Week (“PAW”), Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP hosted a webinar on “Amplifying the Voices of Developing States in ISDS Reform.” This was the third installment in the “Affaires d’Etats” series on Investor-State Dispute Settlement (“ISDS”) initiated by Curtis during 2022 PAW. As the criticisms of ISDS intensify,…
The Supreme Court decision of January 24, 2024 granted the exequatur of a foreign arbitration award and authorized it to be enforced in Chile (the “Decision”). The Decision reaffirms the basic “pro-international arbitration” and “minimal intervention” principles, that posit Chile as an arbitral-friendly jurisdiction so that it could be selected as the seat of many…
On 7 March 2024, the National Branch (“ICC Brasil”) and the ICC Court of Arbitration (“ICC Court”) held the 12th ICC Brazilian Arbitration Day (“ICC BAD” or “Conference”) in São Paulo. Since its inception in 2015, the ICC BAD has enjoyed consistent success, and in 2024 arbitration practicing lawyers and clients had further reasons to…
On 19 January 2024, the High Court of Justice of England and Wales gave judgment in Border Timbers Ltd v Republic of Zimbabwe [2024] EWHC 58 (Comm). The decision of Dias J considered, in detail, the application of the UK State Immunity Act 1978 (“SIA”) to the registration, enforcement, and execution of ICSID arbitral awards…
