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School of Law

New survey launched to explore current and best practice in arbitration process

Published:
International Arbitration

The views of lawyers involved in international commercial and investment arbitration are being sought for a new world-wide arbitration survey from Queen Mary, University London.

Conducted by the College’s School of International Arbitration (SIA), and sponsored by global law firm White & Case LLP, the 2012 survey aims to examine whether a “harmonised international arbitration procedure is emerging, by canvassing the views of experienced arbitration practitioners from all over the world,” comments SIA Director, Professor Loukas Mistelis.

Titled "Current and Best Practices in the Arbitral Process", the survey is the fourth carried out by the School since 2006, and the second sponsored by White and Case (W&C). The survey is part of a major investigation into arbitration practices and trends worldwide. Corporate attitudes towards arbitration, recognition and enforcement of foreign awards, and corporate choices in arbitration in key and emerging markets were past survey themes.

"There are two significant differences between this survey and those done before” says Paul Friedland, Head of White & Case’s International Arbitration Practice Group.  “First, this survey concerns the arbitral process itself, rather than corporate user attitudes towards arbitration.  

“Second, this survey reaches out to arbitration counsel and to arbitrators, in addition to inside counsel.  By so doing, we expect to reach a much broader universe of respondents, and we hope to establish empirical evidence for what actually occurs in arbitration and what works and what does not.”

The following topics will be explored in the 2012 survey:

  • Arbitrator selection: The preferred methods of selecting arbitrators, experiences in interviewing potential arbitrators and expectations regarding the conduct of such interviews.
  • Organising arbitral proceedings: How procedural meetings are convened, the use of the IBA Rules on the Taking of Evidence in International Arbitration, experiences and expectations regarding the role of the tribunal secretary, methods for expediting arbitration proceedings and the use of fast-track arbitration.
  • Interim measures and court assistance: The frequency of interim measures applications to tribunals and courts (including security for costs applications), the level of compliance with tribunal-ordered interim measures and the power of arbitrators to order interim measures ex parte.
  • Document disclosure: The frequency of document disclosure requests, the standard that applies/should apply for disclosing documents in international arbitration, and how to best manage the disclosure process.
  • Fact and expert witnesses: The effectiveness of fact witness statements, experiences and views on mock cross-examination of witnesses and witness conferencing, types of expert witnesses most frequently used and the preferred method of appointing expert witnesses.
  • Pleadings and hearings: The number and order of delivery of written submissions, methods of expediting pleadings and hearings, duration and mode of hearings and the effectiveness of oral closing submissions and post-hearing briefs.
  • Arbitral awards and costs: The frequency of partial, interim and dissenting awards, expectations regarding the length of time to issue an award and experiences and preferences regarding costs allocation.

“It will be interesting to see whether practices and opinions of lawyers from different legal systems are really divergent when it comes to controversial procedural issues,” notes Jure Zrilic, W&C Research Fellow at QM. “This is a unique opportunity for everyone active in arbitration to shape the debate on arbitral processes and contribute to a study of international significance.”

The questionnaire for this year's survey can be accessed at www.arbitrationonline.org/survey. Corporate counsel, private practitioners and arbitrators are strongly encouraged to participate.

Those who wish to contribute have time until the end of May to complete their responses. Questionnaire responses will be followed by individual interviews for those willing to participate. The final report is expected to be launched in September 2012.

The research team comprises Dr Stavros Brekoulakis (Senior Lecturer in Private International Law and Dispute Resolution and Director of Research), Professor Loukas Mistelis and Jure Zrilic at SIA, together with key players at W&C: Paul Friedland, Head of the International Arbitration Practice Group, Ank Santens, International Arbitration Partner, and John Templeman, Global Arbitration Practice Manager, Arbitration Practice Group.

Dr Stavros Brekoulakis, (SIA) is available for interview. He is contactable on:  Email: s.brekoulakis@qmul.ac.uk or +44(0)20 7882 8215

Paul Friedland (W&C) is available for interview. He is contactable in New York on: pfriedland@whitecase.com or + 1-212-819-8917

Notes to Editors

About the School of International Arbitration
The School of International Arbitration was established in 1985 as part of the Centre for Commercial Studies to promote advanced teaching and research in the law and practice affecting international arbitration. Today the School is widely acknowledged as the leading teaching and research centre on international arbitration in the world. Almost all its courses are at post-graduate level. In its 25 year existence the School has had over 2,000 students from over 80 countries all over the world.

About Queen Mary, University of London
Queen Mary, University of London is one of the UK’s leading research-focused higher education institutions with some 16,900 undergraduate and postgraduate students. Amongst the largest of the institutions of the University of London, Queen Mary’s 3,800 staff deliver world-class degree programmes and research across three faculties: Science and Engineering; Humanities and Social Sciences and Medicine and Dentistry.
One of the rising stars in UK higher education, Queen Mary was ranked 11th nationally in the last Research Assessment Exercise, and was rated as one of the world’s elite universities in the 2011 Times Higher Education’s Top 200 World University Rankings.

The College’s School of Law, consisting of the Centre for Commercial Law Studies (CCLS) and the Department of Law, is ranked fourth in the UK in The Guardian’s 2012 University Guide and has consistently been ranked in the top 10 in the UK for research, thanks to its internationally recognised staff, many of whom act as advisers to governments, industry and NGOs, both nationally and internationally.

About White & Case
White & Case LLP is a leading global law firm with lawyers in 38 offices in 26 countries. Among the first US-based law firms to establish a truly global presence, we provide counsel and representation in virtually every area of law that affects cross-border business. Our clients value both the breadth of our global network and the depth of our US, English and local law capabilities in each of our regions and rely on us for their complex cross-border transactions, as well as their representation in arbitration and litigation proceedings.

View this article on the Queen Mary Media Centre

 

 

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