Conference on Winning Strategy for Asian Parties and In-house Counsel with Civil Law Background

The Taiwan Chapter was very honored to co-host with the ICC YAF, iADR®, and Chinese Arbitration Association (CAA) on 26 October 2021 a special conference on the topic of “Winning Strategy for Asian Parties and In-house Counsel with Civil Law Background” as a part of the 2021 Taiwan Arbitration Week events. The conference was held in a hybrid style, with some participants attending in person, at CAA’s Taipei Office and others remotely, online.   

As an opening remark, Ms Alison Chang FCIArb (former Head of Taiwan Chapter YMG, North Asia Representative of the ICC YAF) introduced the logistics of the conference, for which the panel discussion was to be divided into two sessions, with each panel providing their advice and insights from the different roles of outside counsel and arbitrators.  Mr Chen-Gang Yen (North Asia Representative of the ICC YAF) then welcomed all of the conference participants, followed by the giving of valuable advice by Mr Shilin Huang (Member of the ICC International Court of Arbitration) to the in-house counsel participants, which was extracted from his 30-years of experience providing legal service to corporate clients.    

The conference then proceeded to the first session with a panel composed of outside counsel practitioners who provided their advice on winning strategies for Asian parties and in-house counsel with civil law background from the perspective of outside counsel.  Ms Emily Hay (Counsel at Hanotiau & van den Berg) explained the different approaches to evidence between common law and civil law jurisdictions, and laid the groundwork for the other two panelists, Ms. Monica Wang FCIArb (Secretary General of the Taiwan Chapter, Partner at Formosa Transnational, Attorneys-at-Law) and Mr. Alex Lo (Associate at King & Spalding), to develop this topic in further detail, with Monica guiding the participants through the operation of document production in the context of international arbitration and with Alex identifying the must-knows in presenting witness evidence.

The second session was moderated by Dr Helena Chen FCIArb (Convenor of the Taiwan Chapter, Senior Partner at Chen & Chang, Attorneys-at-Law) and was composed of world-famous arbitrators, who gave their valuable time for this event to share their decades-long experiences to the participants.  Mr. Steven Lim (Barrister at 39 Essex Chambers) debunked the long-existing myths of the popularity of common law procedural practice in international arbitration, and explained why he, as a common-law trained practitioner, would prefer to use some of the civil law procedural practices in conducting an arbitral proceeding. Dr David Fong (Chair of CIArb East Asia Branch) gave an enlightening speech on the topic of witness evidence in international arbitration and advised the participants on key considerations when presenting witness evidence before the tribunal. Ms Chiann Bao (Vice-President of ICC International Court of Arbitration) wrapped up the session by providing the participants ten important tips to remember when engaging in an international arbitration and to best present their cases before the tribunal.            

The conference was well-attended and received many positive responses from the participants after conclusion of the conference.

From top left to bottom right: Mr. Steven Lim (Barrister at 39 Essex Chambers), Dr. Helena Chen FCIArb (Convenor of the Taiwan Chapter, Senior Partner at Chen & Chang, Attorneys-at-Law), Mr Shilin Huang (Member of the ICC International Court of Arbitration, Ms. Alison Chang FCIArb (former Head of the Taiwan Chapter YMG, North Asia Representative of the ICC YAF), Dr. David Fong (Chair of CIArb East Asia Branch), Ms Chiann Bao (Vice-President of ICC International Court of Arbitration), Ms. Emily Hay (Counsel at Hanotiau & van den Berg), Mr. Alex Lo (Associate at King & Spalding), and Ms. Monica Wang FCIArb (Secretary General of the Taiwan Chapter, Partner at Formosa Transnational, Attorneys-at-Law).