The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law’s (“UNCITRAL”) Working Group II approved final drafts for a Convention on the Enforcement of Mediation Settlement Agreements (hereinafter “the draft Convention”) and for a Model Law on International Commercial Mediation and International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation (hereinafter “the Mediation Model Law”). While these instruments need to […]
New York Convention
The Concept of Arbitrability in Arbitration
Arbitrability concerns whether a type of a dispute can or cannot be settled by arbitration. In practical terms, arbitrability answers the question of whether a subject matter of a claim is or not reserved to the sphere of domestic courts, under the provisions of national laws. If the dispute is not arbitrable, the arbitral tribunal […]
Cape Verde Arbitration – 158th Contracting State to the New York Convention
Cape Verde, through Resolution 26 / IX / 2017 of 7 February, approved its accession to the 1958 Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (the “New York Convention“), becoming the 158th contracting State to the New York Convention. Following its ratification, on 22 March 2018, the Secretary-General of the United Nations confirmed […]
Resisting the Enforcement of Arbitral Awards: Article V(1)(a) of the New York Convention
According to Article III of the 1958 Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (the “New York Convention“), courts of a Contracting State have the obligation to recognize and enforce an arbitral award. However, it must be borne in mind that the latter have the possibility of refusing the recognition and execution […]
International Arbitration in Pakistan
International arbitration in Pakistan was long governed by two acts: The Arbitration Act 1940(AA) and the Arbitration (Protocol and Convention) Act, 1937(APC). When enforcing foreign arbitration agreements and foreign arbitral awards that met certain criteria, Pakistani Courts applied the APC, otherwise they applied the AA. The Courts, however, failed to apply criteria consistently. Furthermore, disputing […]
Arbitration in Iraq – Iraq Endorses Ratification of the New York Convention
After many delays, on 6 February 2018, Iraq officially endorsed the ratification of the New York Convention, a promising step for arbitration in Iraq. Although in theory Iraq accepts the idea that the New York Convention is necessary, there has been little attention on its accession until recently. Although no drafts of the law are […]
Enforcement of Arbitration Awards in France
The annulment of an arbitration award by a foreign jurisdiction is not a ground for refusing the enforcement of arbitration awards in France. The constant position of the French courts on the enforcement of foreign arbitration awards has been recalled by the Tribunal de Grande Instance d’Every in a decision of 10 February 2017, reproduced […]
Arbitration in Brazil
Arbitration in Brazil has developed significantly over recent decades. The latest ICC statistical report for the year 2016 shows an increasing number of Brazilian parties using arbitration, with 123 Brazilian parties compared to 112 in 2014, placing Brazil in 3rd place in party-rankings worldwide. Brazil is today described as having a pro-arbitration legal regime and […]
Chinese Arbitration Framework
The Chinese Arbitration Framework within which the arbitration is conducted consists of the law, the judicial interpretation and international treaties. First, the laws adopted by the legislature, in particular the 1994 Chinese Arbitration Law, are the most important sources in relation to the Chinese Arbitration Framework. Second, in relation to the judicial interpretation, it is […]