International Commercial Arbitration

Reviewing a clause before a dispute arises

Before signing an international contract, you can arrange a review of its dispute resolution clause. Understand the mechanism selected, where proceedings will take place and under which rules. Governing law, language and arbitration seat provisions should be consistent.

Copying a clause from another contract may leave incorrect details or create unnecessary difficulties. We check whether it suits the intended relationship and potential claims. This reduces uncertainty but does not guarantee that jurisdiction or procedural objections will never arise.

Assessing the dispute and available procedure

If a dispute has arisen, we review the contract, performance and parties’ claims. We separately establish the arbitration agreement’s scope and potential procedural obstacles. A single clause does not automatically cover every claim or person, even where all issues concern the same commercial project.

Distinguish arbitration from commercial litigation. The choice depends on legal grounds, not just one party’s preference. If notice of proceedings has been received, provide it in full with the receipt date before a response is prepared.

Claims, objections and evidence

Under an agreed instruction, we prepare the case, calculations, factual account and procedural documents. A payment claim requires more than invoices: its basis and evidence of performance are needed. A defence requires assessment of the opponent’s documents and your own conduct during performance.

Correspondence, technical material and documents in different languages are organised for the procedure. Completeness, provenance and the sequence of evidence matter. Experts, witnesses or local advisers are assessed separately: not every case needs the same team or expenditure.

Language, professionals and budget

The contract language does not always fully determine the language of proceedings. We first check the agreement, rules and document requirements. Where necessary, we arrange legal translation of contracts, evidence and procedural documents, with the list and scope defined.

The budget may include representation, arbitration fees, translation, examinations and other providers. Payment arrangements and recoverability of costs are checked for the particular procedure. A representative’s fee is not the total cost of proceedings, and reimbursement of every sum spent should not be promised.

Recognition and enforcement of an award

An arbitral award may require a separate procedure in the country of enforcement. We check its content and status, documents required and local process. International arbitration does not itself result in automatic deductions from a debtor’s accounts in any country.

The New York Convention provides an international framework for recognition and enforcement of relevant foreign arbitral awards, but specific conditions and possible refusal grounds must be checked. For debt recovery information about the debtor, assets and available action in the relevant country also matters.

Negotiations during proceedings

The parties may consider settlement at different stages. Before accepting an offer, assess the amount, performance arrangements, security and effects on existing claims. An oral agreement or letter expressing an intention to pay does not fully establish the legal outcome.

If agreement is reached, its form is determined with regard to the procedure. Negotiations should not be treated as automatically removing duties to respond to notices or meet deadlines. We agree who is authorised to communicate and which terms require the client’s separate approval.

What is needed for an initial review

Provide the complete contract, schedules and amendments, arbitration clause, performance timeline, demands and replies. Include procedural notices. Retain the parties’ exact names, signatory details and evidence of documents being sent.

Identify the parties’ countries, known asset locations, intended outcome and claim calculations. Do not replace foreign-language notices with your own summary: details may affect the procedure. For an initial assessment, identify missing documents and facts still in dispute.

Agreeing involvement and later stages

We first identify the possible procedure, authority and urgent steps. We then agree the assistance, providers, fees and additional budget. Clause review, conduct of proceedings and enforcement may be separate instructions with different documents and terms.

During the work, we monitor notices, amended claims and new evidence. Applying to another authority or involving a local representative is assessed for the particular situation. We do not promise a particular award, fixed duration or successful recovery regardless of the legal and financial circumstances.