Transnational Notes

Civil law systems like the German one address jurisdictional questions through inflexible, statutorily-defined grounds of jurisdiction. Courts lack power to dismiss cases for forum non conveniens, and they have no discretion to accept jurisdiction when a valid choice-of-court agreement specifies a different forum. German legal scholars are particularly skeptical towards “flexible” common law jurisdictional doctrinesRead the Rest…

According to a study by the School of International Arbitration of the Queen Mary College, University of London[1] over 90 % of the awards are complied with voluntarily. In recent years arbitral awards rendered against states or state parties have often resulted in multijurisdictional battles at the post award stage when the private party triedRead the Rest…

As of January 2014 a new private law recodification will enter into effect in the Czech Republic. While the cornerstone of this significant change of the Czech private law landscape is primarily the new Civil Code (No. 89/2012 Coll.) and the new Business Corporations Act (No. 90/2012 Coll.), international readers might be interested in theRead the Rest…

The right of access to justice guaranteed by article 6 of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) and arbitration are predetermined to have a difficult relationship. The ECHR secures everyone the right to have their civil claims brought before a court or a tribunal[i] and financial obstacles should not impact this right.[ii] On theRead the Rest…

NYU’s Center for Transnational Litigation and Commercial Law will host a conference on “Forum Shopping in the International Commercial Arbitration Context” The list of speakers include Prof. George A. Bermann, Ms. Christopher Boog, Prof. Jack Coe, Jr., Prof. Filip De Ly, Mr. Domenico Di Pietro, Mr. John Fellas, Prof. Franco Ferrari, Mr. Brian King, Mr.Read the Rest…

On February 11th, the Center – in collaboration with The American Society of International Law – will host a panel discussion on the role of the Permanent Court of Arbitration today. The event will feature keynote remarks by PCA Secretary General Hugo H. Siblesz and a distinguished panel of experts, Michael Reisman, Yale Law SchoolRead the Rest…

1. Introduction On November 16, 2012, the Milan Chamber of Arbitration has hosted its 3rd Annual Conference in international arbitration. The aim of this contribution is to briefly report the lively discussion related to the main topic of the conference – the seat of arbitration – to express some comments on this issue and hopefullyRead the Rest…

1. Introduction: the general context of confidentiality in commercial arbitration As it has been stated by the French newspaper “Le Figaro” on September 9, 2008, “the custom is not to say who arbitrated what”. Confidentiality is considered to be one of the crucial features of commercial arbitration. Historically, arbitration proceedings – as well as arbitralRead the Rest…

A.            Introduction There have recently been various cases where investors successfully asserted a violation of an international investment treaty on the grounds that the host State failed to recognize and enforce a commercial arbitral award as foreseen in the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards of 1958 (the “NewRead the Rest…

In the Middle Ages a new set of rules, based on usages and customs, was developed by merchants with the intention of settling disputes arising between them through an a-national body of rules. This system, named Lex mercatoria, allowed merchants to conclude transactions with different peoples without fear of being subjected to foreign rules inRead the Rest…

For a long time, the prospect of enforcing arbitral awards under the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards of 1958 (the “New York Convention”) has set great incentives to comply with arbitral awards voluntarily.[1] One of the often-quoted advantages of arbitration is the perceived certainty that the national courtsRead the Rest…

The NYU Center for Transnational Litigation and Commercial Law, the NYU Journal of International Law and Politics and the NYU International Law Society are pleased to invite you to the 18th Annual Herbert Rubin And Justice Rose Luttan Rubin International Law Symposium: Tug of War: The Tension Between Regulation and International Cooperation Thursday, October 25th,Read the Rest…

When I recently conducted research on “Arbitration in Banking and Finance”, the following question caught my particular attention: “Is there a need for a sovereign debt tribunal?”. Some authors have answered this question in the affirmative.[1] Others argue that “in accordance with the standard jurisdictional clauses in modern debt instruments, national courts are the properRead the Rest…

The Euro zone crisis is a sovereign debt crisis. It results from the enormous amounts of debt accumulated by a number of currency union member states. The markets question the sustainability of their debt and suspect default. As a result, investors abstain from investing in sovereign bonds from these countries or require high risk yields.Read the Rest…

The Proposal for a Regulation on the Common European Sales Law and the CISG On October 11, 2011, the European Commission adopted a Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on a Common European Sales Law[1] (“Regulation proposal”). The Regulation proposal suggested by the Commission is primarily intended to provideRead the Rest…

In its Decision[1] of May 10, 2012, the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court (the “Court”) upheld the Award[2] on Jurisdiction, Arbitrability and Suspension (the “Award”) of 26 October 2010 in the UNCITRAL arbitration Eureko B.V. v. The Slovak Republic. The Award concerns a dispute between the Slovak Republic and a Dutch company, which arose out ofRead the Rest…

Professor Linda Silberman, Co-Director of the Center, will speak on 29 May 2012, at an event at the British Institute of International and Comparative Law, chaired by former S.Ct. Justice Lawrence Collins, who will be Fellow at Center in October. Mr.  Alex Layton, former Fellow of the Center, will also speak. More information can be found here.

The Swiss Chambers’ Arbitration Institution has recently revealed its revised Arbitration Rules, which are set to enter into force as of June 1st, 2012 (the “Swiss Rules” or the “Rules”). The Rules build on the success of their 2004 predecessor, yet introduce some interesting and well-received changes. This contribution provides a brief overview of someRead the Rest…

Introduction The Brazilian Arbitration Act (the “BAA” or the “Act”)[1] does not distinguish between domestic and international arbitration. It does, however, set different mechanisms for parties to seek and resist enforcement of an arbitral award, depending on whether it is deemed domestic or foreign. On May 24, 2011, the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice (SuperiorRead the Rest…