What goes on in an arbitrator’s head

The workshop was held at the Chartered Institute at 12 Bloomsbury Square.

Chaired by the London Branch Chair, Paul Rose, the speakers were Nicholas Stewart, QC, FCIArb and former deputy high court judge, and Tim Hardy, FCIArb, former head of commercial litigation at CMS, and draftsman of the CIArb’s International Arbitration Practice Guidelines.   

Attended by over 40 members, this interactive workshop examined how the Chartered Institute’s Guidelines help an arbitrator to deal with commonly-encountered issues such as jurisdiction, validity of the arbitration agreement, admissibility, ex-parte relief, interim measures, third party involvement and anti-suit injunctions. 

The participants considered a case study, based on a commercial court case concerning the distribution and marketing of beer in a number of East African countries.   The guidelines may be adopted by the parties as the rules governing the procedure of the arbitration, or they may agree that they will refer to them for inspiration and informal guidance.  They were drafted by a team led by Tim Hardy.