ICC Bulletin

Over two-thirds of respondents to the 2015 Queen Mary School of International Arbitration/White & Case International Arbitration Survey named the ICC International Court of Arbitration as their preferred arbitral institution: ¹

The ICC again tops the chart by a significant margin. When asked about its dominant position, interviewees stressed the internationalism of the ICC and said it offers high-quality services in most jurisdictions.²

As the ICC Court starts a new three-year term, this news comes as a great fillip to further improvements in the quality and efficiency of our services, which will build on our core values of transparency, ethics and diversity.

The Court's recent decision to provide reasons, whenever requested by the parties, on decisions it makes in a number of areas, not only on arbitrator challenges and replacements, but also on jurisdictional objections, joinders and the consolidation of cases, will enhance the clarity and transparency of our administrative process. This new service is a sign of our commitment to remaining fully alert and responsive to users' needs.

We are also more than ever committed to ensuring that our arbitrators and prospective arbitrators are forthcoming on their declarations of acceptance and availability. It is of the utmost importance that the parties dispose at all times of all the relevant information needed to assess whether there exist circumstances that affect the arbitrator's independence and impartiality. Because this is crucial to the trust that parties and states place in arbitration, the Court will continue to be as robust in rejecting frivolous or tactical challenges as it will be in sanctioning failures to disclose.

Lack of speed is one of the most commonly heard criticisms of arbitration from users. It is a top priority of the Court and its Secretariat to see that arbitrations are conducted efficiently. We do so by requiring prospective arbitrators to be open about their availability at the outset of a case, as well as by frequently requesting information from the tribunal on its progression. Inexcusable delays will be sanctioned on the rare occasions that they occur by reducing the tribunal's fees. Likewise, efficiency will be rewarded by the Court when fixing the costs of the arbitration.

The scrutiny of awards is one of our hallmarks, and every effort will be made to maintain the quality of this service for each of the several hundred awards that come before the Court every year. Scrutiny consists of a thorough review of the award at the level of Secretariat, followed by a full discussion at a committee or plenary session of the Court. Its immense value lies in its capacity not only to correct clerical errors and address matters of form that could jeopardize the effectiveness of the award, but also to draw the arbitral tribunal's attention to aspects of the reasoning that may be unclear or contradictory, decisions that may be ultra petita, or findings that may not have been properly addressed by the parties. This process rarely takes more than two or three weeks and, in the immense majority of cases, the Court's comments are accepted by the arbitral tribunal and incorporated into the award.

As part of the International Chamber of Commerce, the Court cannot ignore the global challenges facing trade and industry today. Of these, one of the most important is the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In the run-up to COP 21 in Paris this December, I am pleased to announce that the Court will join forces with the International Bar Association and the Permanent Court of Arbitration to host an international conference in Paris on 7 December 2015 on the role of arbitration and ADR in pursuing climate change objectives and resolving disputes arising out of their implementation

I thank our past and new Vice-Presidents, Court members and all members of the Secretariat of the Court for their remarkable dedication to our users. It is due to their tireless efforts that the Court is able to provide the world's most highly ranked arbitration services. I am proud that within the new Bureau, composed of the Vice-Presidents and myself, we have achieved perfect gender parity. This conveys a strong message, which we hope will be heeded and lead to our seeing more women, as well as more young practitioners and more arbitrators from emerging jurisdictions, sitting on ICC cases in all parts of the world.

Finally, on behalf of the Court I would like to express our profound grief and compassion for all the victims of the unprecedented terrorist attacks of Friday 13 November and for their families. This is a cowardly and horrible act of war against every value the international community stands for. It strikes us to the heart, but by continuing our work for the peaceful resolution of international disputes we will all make a small but meaningful contribution to resistance against this barbaric attack.

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1
School of International Arbitration, Queen Mary, University of London/White & Case, 2015 International Arbitration Survey: Improvements and Innovations in International Arbitration (2015), http://www.arbitration.qmul.ac.uk/docs/164761.pdf.

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2
Ibid. at 17. Interviewees included private practitioners, counsel (including in-house counsel), arbitrators and academics, among others.

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