Arbitration is an essential component in business. In an age when transparency is a maxim, important issues which the laws governing arbitration currently fail to address are the extent to which disclosure of information can be constrained by private agreement along with the extent to which the duty to preserve confidentiality can be stretched. Absent a coherent legal framework and extensive qualitative and quantitative data, it is equally difficult to suggest and predict future directions. This book offers a tool for attaining centralised access to otherwise fragmentary and dispersed material, as well as a comprehensive analysis and detailed exposition of the position in relation to confidentiality in arbitration in the jurisdictions of England, USA, France and Germany.

After neutrality and international enforcement, the next most valued feature of international commercial arbitration is confidentiality. For reasons easy to imagine, businessmen do not want their trade secrets, business plans, strategies, contracts, financial results or any other types of business information to be publicly accessible, as would commonly happen in court proceedings. Yet the case law of arbitration shows that in practical terms confidentiality is not to be taken for granted - in fact, it has become one of the most undetermined matters in international arbitration. Although 'the emperor of arbitration may have clothes, ' as one scholar has quipped, his raiments of secrecy can be 'torn with surprising ease'. This book deciphers the current degree of confidentiality in international commercial arbitration as reflected by the most important arbitration rules, national laws, other arbitration-related enactments, and practices of arbitral tribunals and domestic courts globally. Drawing on this data and analysis, the author then sets forth criteria to assess the breach of confidentiality in international arbitration and the proper rules for protecting or sanctioning such breaches. What do we understand by confidentiality in arbitration? What are its limitations? Who is bound to observe it? How can we quantify its breach? In addressing these questions, the book engages such issues as the following: reasons for disclosure - e.g., for the establishment of a defence, for the enforcement of rights, in the public interest or in the interests of justice disclosure by consent, express or implied; circumstances triggering statutory obligation of disclosure; recent trends towards greater transparency in investor-State arbitration; court measures in support of arbitral confidentiality such as award of damages for breach of confidentiality; and categories of persons bound by confidentiality, including third parties such as witnesses and experts. Structured along the main stages of the arbitral process, the analysis covers the duty of confidentiality from the initiation of arbitral proceedings through their unfolding to the issuance of the award and after. The scope of confidentiality is reviewed in the practice of arbitral tribunals and domestic courts, and from the perspective of international arbitration institutions, with detailed attention to various arbitration rules and numerous significant cases. In its elucidation of the amount of confidentiality that 'veils' each phase of the arbitral process, and its ground-breaking identification of 'patterns of disclosure', this book is sure to raise awareness about the various facets and problems posed by confidentiality in arbitration. Although its scholarly contribution to the law of international commercial arbitration cannot be gainsaid, corporate counsel worldwide will quickly prize its more practical value.

The book deals with confidentiality as one of the most controversial issues in international commercial arbitration. On the one hand, it is widely recognized that confidentiality is an important advantage of arbitration which contributes to its attractiveness. On the other hand, there is no uniform regulation in national legislations, arbitration rules, and other relevant sources as to the scope or even to the existence of a duty of confidentiality. A uniform approach to confidentiality of international commercial arbitration is possible. The best way to achieve it would be through harmonization of national arbitration laws which should impose a confidentiality obligation subject to certain exceptions. The purpose of maintaining confidentiality would be to protect primarily the parties from undesirable leaks that can be avoided and to protect arbitration as an institution. As to a systematic publication of arbitral awards without identifying the parties’ identity, it is desirable and should be the goal.

Drawing on a large and varied body of judicial and arbitral case law, this book provides a comprehensive, original, and up-to-date account of the role of equity in international law.

International Arbitration in the United States is a comprehensive analysis of international arbitration law and practice in the United States (U.S.). Choosing an arbitration seat in the U.S. is a common choice among parties to international commercial agreements or treaties. However, the complexities of arbitrating in a federal system, and the continuing development of U.S. arbitration law and practice, can be daunting to even experienced arbitrators. This book, the first of its kind, provides parties opting for “private justice” with vital judicial reassurance on U.S. courts’ highly supportive posture in enforcing awards and its pronounced reluctance to intervene in the arbitral process. With a nationwide treatment describing both the default forum under federal arbitration law and the array of options to which parties may agree in state courts under state international arbitration statutes, this book covers aspects of U.S. arbitration law and practice as the following: .institutions and institutional rules that practitioners typically use; .ethical considerations; .costs and fees; .provisional measures; and .confidentiality. There are also chapters on arbitration in specialized areas such as class actions, securities, construction, insurance, and intellectual property.

International Arbitration: Law and Practice (Third Edition) provides comprehensive and authoritative coverage of the basic principles and legal doctrines, and the practice, of international arbitration. The book contains a systematic, but concise, treatment of all aspects of the arbitral process, including international arbitration agreements, international arbitral proceedings and international arbitral awards. The Third Edition guides both students and practitioners through the entire arbitral process, beginning with drafting, enforcing and interpreting international arbitration agreements, to selecting arbitrators and conducting arbitral proceedings, to recognizing, enforcing and seeking to annul arbitral awards. The book is written in clear, accessible language, suited for both law students and non-specialist practitioners, as well as more experienced readers. This highly regarded work addresses both international commercial arbitration and the related fields of investment and state-to-state arbitration and is essential reading for any student of international arbitration and any practitioner seeking a complete introduction to the field. The Third Edition has been comprehensively updated to include recent legislative amendments, judicial decisions and arbitral awards. Among other things, the book provides detailed treatment of the New York Convention, the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration, all leading institutional arbitration rules (including ICC, SIAC, LCIA, AAA and others), the ICSID Convention and ICSID Arbitration Rules, and judicial decisions from leading jurisdictions. The Third Edition is integrated with the author’s classic International Commercial Arbitration and with the online Born International Arbitration Lectures, enabling students, teachers and practitioners to explore particular topics in more detail. About the Author: Gary B. Born is the world’s leading authority on international arbitration and litigation. He has practiced extensively in both fields in Europe, the United States, Asia and elsewhere. He is the author of International Commercial Arbitration (Kluwer Law International 3rd ed. 2021), International Arbitration and Forum Selection Agreements: Drafting and Enforcing (Kluwer Law International 6th ed. 2021), International Commercial Arbitration: Cases and Materials (Aspen 3rd ed. 2021) and International Civil Litigation in United States Courts (Aspen 6th ed. 2018).