International Arbitration: A Human Endeavour

Edited by Chiann Bao and Audley Sheppard KC

International arbitration is built not only on legal norms and procedural frameworks, but by the individuals who craft, interpret, and implement them. This book explores how human qualities, such as perception, reasoning, and culture, inform the daily practice of international arbitration. 

The volume gathers contributions presented at the twenty-sixth Congress of the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA), held in Hong Kong in May 2024, under the theme International Arbitration: A Human Endeavour. Framed as both a statement and a provocation, the theme invites critical reflection on the role of the individual in a system often portrayed as neutral, objective, and abstract. 

Across fifty-one chapters from fifteen thematic panels, the book explores questions at the heart of arbitral practice:

• Unveiling the Human Dimension in International Arbitration;
• The Arbitrator;
• Decision-Making and Biases;
• Sociology and Education;
• Judging the New York Convention;
• Culture, Localisation and Regionalism;
• The Advocate;
• Procedures and Behaviours;
• It’s (Not) Just Semantics – The Hidden Power of Language;
• Inter-Personal Conduct and Ethics;
• Dispute Resolution and the Global Community;
• Working in an Adversarial Environment;
• Costs and Economics; and

• International Arbitration: An AI Endeavour.

   

Set against a backdrop of global change and increased attention to inclusivity, transparency, and accountability in arbitration, the chapters offer timely and candid reflections on the lived experience of arbitration. They examine how the human element continues to shape arbitral justice today, but also how it may be redefined in a future increasingly influenced by social and technological changes. Together, the contributions paint a picture of international arbitration as a profoundly human endeavour, shaped by those who practice it and those who will redefine its future.

2022 Edinburgh, Arbitration’s Age of Enlightenment? (Congress Series no. 21)

2018 Sydney, Evolution and Adaptation: The Future of International Arbitration (Congress Series no. 20)

2016 Mauritius, International Arbitration and the Rule of Law: Contribution and Conformity (Congress Series no. 19)

2014, Miami, International Arbitration, Legitimacy: Myths, Realities, Challenges (Congress Series no. 18)

2012, Singapore, International Arbitration, The Coming of a New Age? (Congress Series no. 17)

2011, Geneva, Arbitration- The Next Fifty Years, 50th Anniversary Conference (Congress Series no. 16)

2010, Rio, Arbitration Advocacy in Changing Times (Congress Series no. 15)

2008, Dublin, 50 Years of the New York Convention (Congress Series no. 14)

2006, Montreal, International Arbitration 2006: Back to Basics? (Congress Series no. 13)

2004, Beijing, New Horizons in International Commercial Arbitration and Beyond (Congress Series no. 12)

2002, London, International Commercial Arbitration, Important Contemporary Questions (Congress Series no. 11)

2000, New Dehli, International Arbitration and National Courts, the Never Ending Story (Congress Series no. 10)

1998, Paris, Improving the Efficiency of Arbitration Agreements and Awards, 40 Years of Application of the New York Convention (Congress Series no. 9)

1996, Seoul, International Dispute Resolution: Towards an International Culture (Congress Series no. 8)

1994, Vienna, Planning Efficient Arbitration Proceedings: the Law applicable in International Arbitration (Congress Series no. 7)

1993, Bahrain, International Arbitration in a Changing World (Congress Series no. 6)

1990, Stockholm, Preventing Delay and Disruption of Arbitration Effective Proceedings in Construction Cases (Congress Series no. 5)

1988, Tokyo, Arbitration in Settlement of International Commercial Disputes involving the Far East and Arbitration in Combined Transportation (Congress Series no. 4)

1986, New York, Comparative Arbitration Practice and Public Policy in Arbitration (Congress Series no. 3)

1984, Lausanne, UNCITRAL's Project for Model Law on Intl. Commercial Arbitration (Congress Series no. 2)

1982, Hamburg, Trends in the Development of Intl. Commerical Arbitration: Role of Arbitral and other Institutions (Congress Series no. 1)