Planning Efficient Arbitration Proceedings

In ICCA's latest Congress Series, international experts, professionals and practitioners in the field of arbitration put forward answers to the challenge facing international arbitrators to improve the efficiency and predictability of arbitration proceedings. In order to present these topics coherently, the organizers of ICCA's 12th International Arbitration Congress, held in Vienna in November 1994, divided the forum into two working groups: "Planning Efficient Arbitration Proceedings" and "The Law Applicable in International Arbitration". Working Group I focused on the arbitrator's ability to plan proceedings, using various formal and informal methods and techniques. In particular, attention was drawn to the UNCITRAL Draft Guidelines which provides arbitrators with a written reminder of items to be covered while planning proceedings. During debate, proponents emphasized the "optional" character of the guidelines, to allay fears that more efficiency would reduce the ability to solve disputes flexibly. Working Group I also discussed means of improving the presentation of evidence during proceedings. Working Group II faced the complications arbitral tribunals may encounter when the law applicable to the substance of a dispute and the law governing the procedure are different. Attention was also directed toward three other systems of law which may be relevant during the proceedings: the law governing the capacity of the parties, the law applicable to the arbitration agreement and the appropriate conflicts-of-law rules to determine the substantive law. In general the reports of both Working Groups expressed a desire for a more standardized and international approach to arbitration proceedings and emphasized the need to prevent parochial national preference from creating unnecessary obstructions.