Multiparty Arbitration

One third of ICC international arbitrations involve complex multiparty - multi-contract issues. Given the increasing number and complexity of commercial transactions, more and more international arbitrations involve disputes arising from, or connected with, more than one contract and more than two parties. Such disputes involve many complex issues relating in particular to jurisdiction and merits: May an arbitration clause be extended to non-signatory party or parties? To what extent can one bring to a single arbitration proceeding the various parties who have participated in a single economic transaction through several contracts? If separate arbitration proceedings need to be started, can they be consolidated and under what conditions? Can a respondent join another party or parties, be they privy to the arbitration agreement or third parties? Can a respondent in the arbitration proceedings bring a claim against another respondent? What are the consequences of the answers to the above questions and others for the enforceability of the award? Is class wide arbitration possible and desirable? How does it work? Dossier VII of the ICC Institute, Multiparty Arbitration, seeks to encourage reflection on these issues and many others recurrent in complex multiparty – multi-contracts arbitrations. This Dossier VII, Multiparty Arbitration, is published under the auspices of the ICC Institute of World Business Law, chaired by Serge Lazareff, distinguished Member of the Paris Bar. With this publication, the ICC Institute of World Business Law fulfils its dual mission: training and acting as a think-tank for the International Chamber of Commerce particularly in the field of arbitration. The International Chamber of Commerce, the World Business Organization, based in Paris, is the global leader in the development of standards, rules and reference guides for international trade. The contributors to this Dossier include: Gerald Aksen, Christian Albanesi, Sébastien Besson, Stephen R. Bond, Kristof Cox, Yves Derains, José Ricardo Feris, Simon Greenberg, Fernando Mantilla Serrano, Pierre Mayer, Georgios Petrochilos, S.I Strong, John M. Townsend, Karim Youssef.