Annual Arbitration & ADR Conference | 23 & 24 October 2024

Young Arbitration & ADR Session on First Appointments

This session will focus on the experience of first-time or new arbitrators after they secured their first appointment. It will be a war stories-cum-lessons learnt type of session with a panel composed of young under-40 arbitrators. This practical session will cover themes like drafting the first procedural order, handling recalcitrant parties, whom and how to seek advice from within your organization and network, maintaining party’s confidence when the parties’ counsels are older and more experienced than you.

Culture Wars: Insolvency meets International Arbitration

‘Arbitration’ and ‘Insolvency’ are often described as two worlds with different perspectives on fundamental aspects of the legal system. Whereas arbitration is said to afford primacy to party intent, insolvency is inherently concerned with rights of third parties such as creditors. Complex legal and policy questions arise when the two disciplines are forced to interact.  In this session, our speakers will explore some of these issues in the context of ongoing efforts to harmonise cross border insolvency regimes.

Tony Dymond, Partner, Debevoise & Plimpton
James Barratt, Partner and Co-Head of International Disputes – Europe, Vinson & Elkins
Angeline Welsh KC, Barrister, Essex Court Chambers

Expedited procedures

Costas Frangeskides, Partner, Wordley Partnership
James Clanchy, Commercial Arbitrator

Registration

Welcome remarks
Guy Pendell, Chair, ICC United Kingdom Arbitration & ADR Committee
Stuart Dutson and Philippe Cavalieros (Vice-Chair of the ICC Commission on Arbitration & ADR, Paris), Co-Chairs, International Arbitration Group, Simmons & Simmons

Keynote address: The role of arbitral tribunal
The Hon Mr Justice (Sir Robin) Knowles CBE

Commercial Court, Roll Building, Royal Courts of Justice

Is the international arbitration system too prone to abuse?

Following the criticism from Mr Justice Robin Knowles in Nigeria v P&ID, is it fair to suggest that international arbitration as a process is too prone to abuse? This session will discuss the following:

• Does corruption get rooted out sufficiently?
• Are mismatched parties properly handled?
• Does the governing law get adequately ventilated?
• Is conduct by arbitrators given too much deference in later court challenges as a default way of furthering the finality of international arbitration?
• Is money laundering and other illegality sufficiently exposed?
• Do guerrilla tactics and due process paranoia get handled well?
• Are spurious claims nixed appropriately?
• Is it enough that the supervising court process will catch the “bad” awards, or does the system need to fundamentally change to make sure those awards never make it out in the first place?

Sophie Nappert, Three Verulam Buildings
Sir Bernard Rix, Twenty Essex
Charles Debattista, Joint Head, 36 Stone
Professor Emilia Onyema, International Commercial Law, SOAS

Q&A

Networking break

Unwritten evidential rules in international arbitration

This panel will focus on how common and civil law conventions affect the taking of evidence and whether they make the arbitral process fairer. Our speakers will discuss the influence of custom and convention on the evidential process and the difference of approach across different jurisdictions.

Samantha J Rowe, Partner, Debevoise & Plimpton LLP and Vice Chair, ICC United Kingdom Arbitration and ADR Committee
James Shaerf, Barrister, 39 Essex Chambers
Friederike Schäfer, Partner, ZEILER

Q&A

Fireside chat: A Client Perspective

Moderator: Patrick Leonard SC, Vice Chair, ICC Commission on Arbitration & ADR, Senior Counsel, The Bar of Ireland

Interviewee: Sapan Gupta, Vice-President, Group General Counsel, ArcelorMittal Group

Networking lunch

Keynote address – speaker tba

AI in arbitration – A SWOT analysis

Since the launch of Chat GPT in November 2022, AI has had a huge impact on commerce and society at large. Whether or not practitioners are ready for it, AI, and specifically generative AI, is already changing the way we work and the pace of this change is only likely to accelerate.

This session will consider the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of AI and will explore the crucial question of what do those involved arbitration want from AI?

Ben Knowles, Partner, Clyde & Co
Joseph Otoo, Senior Legal Counsel, Associate Director, Arup
Minesh Tanna, Global AI Lead, Partner, Simmons & Simmons
Stephen Dowling, Senior Counsel and Founder, TrialView
Monica Crespo, Head of Product, Jus Mundi

Networking break

The ongoing impact of sanctions on arbitration

The impact of sanctions and Russian “countersanctions” on arbitration agreements and arbitration proceedings continues to give rise to complexity, particularly given the absence of established law. This panel aims to address UK and EU sanctions legislation and the effect of the 2020 amendments to the Russian Arbitrazh Procedural Code (APC) to grant exclusive jurisdiction to Russian courts over disputes arising from foreign sanctions and involving sanctioned persons. The panel will also focus on the scope and effect of the statutory protections on disputes submitted to arbitration.

Charles Claypoole, Partner, Latham & Watkins
Shannon Lazzarini, until recently Head of Group Legal Advice & Litigation and Group Deputy General Counsel, UniCredit
James Hope, Partner, Advokatfirman Vinge
Roman Khodykin, Partner, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP

Q&A

Facilitating settlement in international arbitration

Following on from the release of the ICC’s report on Facilitating Settlement in International Arbitration, the panel will discuss techniques for facilitating settlement, including those deployed by courts in different jurisdictions , arbitral institutions and arbitral tribunals.

Our speakers will discuss whether:

• institutions and/or tribunals should discuss alternative forms of disputes resolution such as mediation and joint expert determinations with parties;
• directions for preliminary issues, powers of summary disposal, orders for security and the practice of the “Referentenaudienz” can (and should) be used to facilitate settlement; and
• more use should be made of offers made without prejudice to costs or costs rules.

Duncan Bagshaw, Partner, Howard Kennedy, Vice Chair, ICC United Kingdom Arbitration and ADR Committee
Matt Fritzsche, Partner, Claims & Disputes, Forensic & Integrity Services, Ernst & Young LLP
Jennifer Haywood, Arbitrator and Barrister, Serle Court
Kate Jackson, Independent Mediators
Fabio Solimene, Assistant General Counsel, Honeywell HPS and PMC
Angelina M. Petti, Partner, Arbitrator and Counsel, Von Segesser Law Offices Ltd

Q&A

Closing remarks
Guy Pendell, Chair, ICC United Kingdom Arbitration & ADR Committee

Networking drinks