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Centre for Commercial Law Studies

QMUL and Pinsent Masons launch 2016 Dispute Resolution Survey

International law firm Pinsent Masons and Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) are launching a research project to uncover how businesses can streamline their approach to technology dispute resolution.

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Today marks the launch of the first phase of the research, a survey of businesses to identify and benchmark common market practices for resolving technology, media and telecoms (TMT) disputes (including through mediation and arbitration). Businesses are invited to participate in the 2016 International Dispute Resolution Survey: An insight into resolving Technology, Media and Telecoms Disputes which is open until 29 July 2016.

Technology disputes are renowned for their significant legal costs and lengthy resolution processes, many of which have hit the headlines (including numerous public sector projects).

Over the next four months the study, led by the Pinsent Masons research fellow at QMUL, Gustavo Moser, will undertake an empirical study analysing businesses' experiences of TMT dispute resolution and their perceptions of the effectiveness of the different resolution processes available.

David McIlwaine, a Partner specialising in IT dispute resolution and renegotiation at Pinsent Masons, says:

"Businesses are prepared to invest significant amounts of money in technology, whether in relation to software implementation projects, services integration programmes, outsourcing relationships, communications upgrades or otherwise. In doing so, customers place a huge amount of trust in suppliers to deliver to their business and to maintain business operations. But such relationships can go badly wrong, and where they do the issue becomes how best to resolve these complex disputes in the most effective way, particularly where the parties are of different nationalities. National courts and international arbitration each have benefits and detriments, but which will deliver reliable and enforceable decisions quickly and cost effectively? This study will reveal the market's preferred approach and reasons for that."

Gustavo Moser, Pinsent Masons Research Fellow in International Arbitration at QMUL, adds:

"With the support of major businesses inputting into our research, this empirical study will provide the industry with both a definitive guide to help benchmark a business's approach to dispute resolution against the industry standard, as well as a fresh approach to directly address the challenges that impact the efficiency of the process."

The study is the seventh in a series of research projects from QMUL's School of International Arbitration and is the first of its kind bespoke to the TMT sector.

Professor Loukas Mistelis, Director of the School of International Arbitration at QMUL, notes:

“While there is a great of data relating to the attitudes of significant users of arbitration, such as construction and energy, related data for technology, media and telecoms sector are scarce. A bespoke survey will assist the wider arbitration community identify the expectations and needs of this significant sectors of modern economy.”

Survey closes 17 July 2016. To participate, please visit the 2016 International Dispute Resolution Survey: An insight into resolving Technology, Media and Telecoms Disputes webpage.

About Pinsent Masons

Pinsent Masons is a global 100 law firm, specialising particularly in the energy, infrastructure, financial services, real estate and advanced manufacturing and technology sectors. The firm employs over 2500 people in total, including over 1500 lawyers and more than 400 partners.

The firm's international footprint encompasses six offices across Asia Pacific - including in Sydney and Melbourne - two offices in the Middle East and four offices in continental Europe. The firm also has comprehensive coverage across each of the UK's three legal jurisdictions.

  • Pinsent Masons LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England & Wales (registered number: OC333653) authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, and by the appropriate regulatory body in the other jurisdictions in which it operates. The word ‘partner’, used in relation to the LLP, refers to a member of the LLP or an employee or consultant of the LLP or any affiliated firm who is a lawyer with equivalent standing and qualifications. A list of the members of the LLP, and of those non-members who are designated as partners, is displayed at the LLP’s registered office: 30 Crown Place, London EC2A 4ES, United Kingdom.
  • We use ‘Pinsent Masons’ to refer to Pinsent Masons LLP and affiliated entities that practise under the name ‘Pinsent Masons’ or a name that incorporates those words. Reference to ‘Pinsent Masons’ is to Pinsent Masons LLP and/or one or more of those affiliated entities as the context requires. © Pinsent Masons LLP 2013.
  • Pinsent Masons office network extends across the major international business centres of London, Munich, Paris, Brussels, Düsseldorf Istanbul, Doha, Dubai, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Sydney and Melbourne - and the key commercial centres in the UK.

About Queen Mary University of London

Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) is one of the UK’s leading universities, and one of the largest institutions in the University of London, with 20,260 students from more than 150 countries.

A member of the Russell Group, we work across the humanities and social sciences, medicine and dentistry, and science and engineering, with inspirational teaching directly informed by our research - in the most recent national assessment of the quality of research, we were placed ninth in the UK (REF 2014).

 

 

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