On 8 June 2022, the International Federation of Commercial Arbitration Institutions (IFCAI) appointed CIArb’s Director General, Catherine Dixon, to its Council along with several other new Council Members, all of whom are prominent and influential members of the ADR community.

Catherine Dixon’s appointment to the Council is testament to CIArb’s continued commitment to foster constructive and productive relationships with ADR institutions across the world, share knowledge and best practice in effective dispute resolution and strengthen the CIArb brand globally. 

IFCAI met for a General Assembly at the Spazi Associazione Civita in Rome. The meeting opened with President Stefano Azzali’s welcome, and included the elections of Council Members, in accordance with the Constitution, as well as several other agenda points.

Catherine Dixon, the Director General of CIArb, was put forward to the Council. As part of her letter of intention, written ahead to the nominating committee of the IFCAI Secretariat, she stated: 

“With regards to the CIArb strategy 2021-2023, there are two elements which have driven me to apply to become a council member. Firstly, we committed as a professional body to globally promote the constructive resolution of disputes. As part of this, we agreed to “work collaboratively, partnering to promote all forms of effective dispute resolution across the globe”. Becoming a member of the IFCAI Council would be a great step to achieving this aim, as it would enable me to be a part of a well-established federation that aims at exchanging information on all aspects of arbitration and conciliation.  

The second strategic aim was to be a global inclusive thought leader, whereby we agreed to “support any projects which use all forms of effective dispute resolution”.  As the Federation’s aims are to “establish and maintain permanent relations between commercial arbitration institutions” – I believe it would be a symbiotic relationship and a worthwhile match for both CIArb and IFCAI were I to become actively involved as a council member of IFCAI.”  

At the culmination of the voting, Catherine Dixon was nominated to the Council. The other individuals nominated to the Council are:

• Kristin Campbell-Wilson (SCC), Secretary General of the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce
• Alexander Fessas (ICC), Secretary General of the ICC International Court of Arbitration and Secretary General Director for ICC Dispute Resolution Services
• Jamie Harrison (LCIA), Deputy Director General of the London Court of International Arbitration
• Gaston Kenfack (APAA), President of the Association for the Promotion of Arbitration in Africa
• Patrícia Kobayashi (CAM-CCBC), Secretary General of the Centro de Arbitragem e Mediaçao in São Paulo
• Niamh Leinwather (VIAC), Secretary General of Vienna International Arbitral Centre
• Kevin Nash (SIAC), CEO and Deputy Registrar of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre
• Camilla Perera-De Wit (NAI), Secretary General Director of the Netherlands Arbitration Institute
• Ismail Selim (CRCICA), Director of the Cairo Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration  
• Salim Sleiman (BCDR), Senior Case Manager of the Bahrein Chamber of Dispute Resolution
• Deborah Tomkinson (ACICA), Secretary General of the Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration
• Eric Tuchmann (ICDR-AAA), Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for the American Arbitration Association-International Centre for Dispute Resolution
• Emma Van Campenhoudt (CEPANI), Secretary General of the Belgian Center for Arbitration and Mediation

In an email from the IFCAI Secretariat announcing and welcoming the new council, it was noted that:

CIArb and Catherine look forward to working with the Council and congratulate the newly appointed Council Members on their appointments.

The International Federation of Commercial Arbitration Institutions (IFCAI) was established in 1985 and it now consists of 52 member organizations worldwide. The Federation’s aims are to establish and maintain permanent relations between commercial arbitration institutions, foster a broad exchange of information on all aspects of arbitration and conciliation, encourage the responsible use of these dispute resolution techniques and facilitate the exchange of information on member organization services.