On 9 March 2021, the Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration (ACICA) released the inaugural Australian Arbitration Report. The Report analysed data obtained by ACICA and FTI Consulting in the inaugural Australian Arbitration Survey. The Survey collected data on arbitrations commenced, conducted and concluded in the period between 2017 and 2019 with an Australian ‘connection’ … Read more

By Brenda Horrigan, Chad Catterwell and Guillermo Garcia-Perrote. International arbitration is gaining ground across the South Pacific region. There are a wide range of benefits brought about by implementing an effective framework for international arbitration across the region, most prominently increased foreign investment opportunities and the economic advantages that brings. Presently, eight countries from the … Read more

On 12 October 2020 the new Tokyo hearing facility of the Japan International Dispute Resolution Centre (JIDRC) officially launched. The opening ceremony for the purpose built, state-of-the-art facility – held in person at its premises in central Tokyo and joined virtually by participants from around the world – represents a key milestone in Japan’s quest … Read more

On 20 May 2020, the House of Representatives in Japan passed a bill to expand the Act on Special Measures concerning the Handling of Legal Services by Foreign Lawyers (外国弁護士による法律事務の取扱いに関する特別措置法) (the “2020 Gaiben law”). This is significant for two reasons. First, it allows foreign lawyers to act in a broader range of arbitrations. And second, … Read more

On 9 January 2019, Hong Kong’s Department of Justice and the Ministry of Justice of Japan signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) to “strengthen collaboration on international arbitration and mediation“. The MoC, a copy of which is available here, provides a general administrative framework for cooperation between Japan and Hong Kong in relation to international … Read more

Overview The Japan Commercial Arbitration Association (JCAA) has issued an announcement that it is (i) amending its two current sets of arbitration rules and (ii) introducing a revolutionary set of rules designed to provide efficient and cheap civil-law style arbitration. In its introduction to an initial call for public comments on the drafts, the JCAA … Read more

On 17 July 2018, the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) was formally signed during the EU-Japan summit in Tokyo.  The EPA – the largest free trade agreement ever negotiated by the EU – has been years in the making and took significant time and effort to get to this stage. You can read more about … Read more

  The Australian judiciary has again proven that Australia is a pro-arbitration destination, by recognising and enforcing an award and decision rendered under the rules of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). In Lahoud v The Democratic Republic of Congo [2017] FCA 982 (Lahoud), the Federal Court of Australia highlights that applicants … Read more