Under existing precedent in the 11th Circuit, which includes Florida, federal courts cannot overturn international arbitration awards on the ground that the arbitrators “exceeded their powers,” a frequently invoked
Continue Reading Can An International Arbitration Award Be Vacated When The Seat Of Arbitration Is The US Or US Law Is The Substantive Law?The D.C. District Court Allows State Sponsored Tribunal to Seek Discovery in Federal Court under 28 USC § 1782(a)
As the U.S. Supreme Court currently considers the issue of whether a private international arbitration constitutes a “foreign or international tribunal” within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. § 1782(a), the
Continue Reading The D.C. District Court Allows State Sponsored Tribunal to Seek Discovery in Federal Court under 28 USC § 1782(a)
Revised ICDR 2021 Rules Are Now In Effect
Like some other international arbitration institutions, the International Centre for Dispute Resolution (“ICDR”) recently adopted amendments to its International Dispute Resolution Procedures (the “2021 ICDR Rules”). The ICDR’s amendment became effective on March 1, 2021. The amendments, according to the ICDR, aim to “promote greater efficiency and economy by addressing the early disposition of issues, emphasizing the use of mediation, and expanding the applicability of the expedited procedures. Importantly, the rules also place an increased emphasis on arbitrators’ ethical obligations.” The 2021 ICDR Rules also address challenges and concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the use of video, audio, and other electronic means of communication.
Notable and significant revisions include:
Authority of International Administrative Council (“IARC”)
Article 5 of the 2021 ICDR Rules expressly authorizes IARC to (1) determine challenges to the appointment or continuing service of an arbitrator; (2) decide disputes regarding the number of arbitrators to be appointed; (3) determine whether a party has met the administrative requirements to initiate or file an arbitration; (4) in case of parties disagreement, determine the initial place of arbitration.
Joinder
The joinder rules have been expanded in Article 8(1) as now the joinder is permitted after the constitution of the tribunal if the tribunal determines that the joinder is appropriate and the additional party consents to be joined.
As we have previously reported, International Court of Arbitration (“ICC”) also recently expanded its joinder rules.
Continue Reading Revised ICDR 2021 Rules Are Now In Effect
Uncertainty Continues Over Whether Federal Courts Can Order Discovery in Aid of International Arbitrations
As we have discussed in previous posts, federal appeals courts in the United States are split over whether a private international arbitration constitutes a “foreign or international tribunal” within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. § 1782(a), which authorizes U.S. district courts to provide assistance to foreign or international tribunals by ordering discovery of persons in the district. In a very recent case, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia recognized this split, and directed the parties to provide additional briefing before deciding this hotly disputed issue.
In In re Application of: Food Delivery Holding 12 S.A.R.L., 1:21-mc-00005, 2021 WL 860262 (Mar. 8, 2021), Food Delivery Holding 12 S.a.r.l. (“FDH”) filed an application under 28 U.S.C. §1782 for an order to issue a subpoena for the taking of deposition and production of documents for use in a matter before the Dubai International Finance Centre-London Court of International Arbitration (“DIFC-LCIA”).
The Court began its analysis by noting that deciding whether to grant discovery under Section 1782 involves a two-step inquiry:
First, the court must determine whether it can order the requested relief—that is, whether it has the authority to do so; second, it must decide whether it should order the requested relief—that is, whether exercising its discretion to do so would further the statute’s “twin aims of ‘providing efficient assistance to participants in international litigation and encouraging foreign countries by example to provide similar assistance in our courts.’”
LCIA Releases Update To Its Arbitration Rules
The London Court of Arbitration (LCIA) released 2020 update to its arbitration and mediation rules (the “Rules updates”), which comes into effect on October 1, 2020. The purpose of the
Continue Reading LCIA Releases Update To Its Arbitration Rules