Online Technologies in International Arbitration

Nowadays, resolving an international dispute through arbitration and at the same time using various technologies has become a trend, especially in light of the measures taken globally to combat the coronavirus pandemic. What kind of technology and how will be used by the parties should be specified in the first procedural order or in the terms of reference of the arbitration. This will avoid misunderstandings. How modern technologies are used in resolving disputes using international arbitration, please read below in this blog post.

Difficulties and obstacles

International commercial arbitration is the most politically and procedurally neutral and independent way of resolving disputes between entities from different countries. Indeed, since the conflict participants are located in different countries, the legal systems and legislation of which can be very different.

They can be based on completely different legal concepts that have different traditions and legal culture. As a rule, the parties are not inclined to apply to the state to protect their rights, even if there are specialized commercial or economic courts in these countries. And this behavior of the parties is absolutely understandable: they do not want to face additional difficulties in a law and process unfamiliar to them, and even with the use of a language other than the language of the contract. During the coronavirus pandemic, additional obstacles to international arbitration have emerged due to restrictions on movement. The latest online technologies come to the rescue.

Before you start

An important aspect is the possibility of using online technologies during the consideration of cases, the introduction of the concept of "electronic evidence", the possibility of reducing arbitration costs, checking the draft of the arbitral award, new approaches to determining the date of the arbitral award.

Before starting arbitration in Europe or Asia using video technology, the following aspects should be considered:

• Data protection;
• IT security and the necessary technical equipment;
• Online help of an interpreter for witnesses;
• Use of selected software in the process of resolving a dispute by means of arbitration.

Fast track procedure

Recently, an expedited arbitration procedure has been introduced. Such consideration is carried out if the parties provided for it in the arbitration agreement or agreed on it in the future; considered by an arbitration court consisting of one arbitrator, unless the parties have agreed on another; without holding an oral hearing, on the basis of written materials, unless the parties have agreed otherwise, or if the arbitral tribunal does not consider it expedient to hold it.

At the same time, reduced fixed time limits have been established for the plaintiff to pay the arbitration fee, to submit a response to the statement of claim or counterclaim, to appoint an arbitrator, and to issue an arbitral award.

It is important to understand that the use of technology in remote dispute resolution through arbitration should be aimed at facilitating processes. In addition to being a way to resolve conflicts remotely in the context of the coronavirus pandemic, online arbitration can be used to make litigation more efficient and cost-effective. Modern international arbitration provides the parties with the opportunity to achieve these goals, taking into account the nature and complexity of the dispute.

Legal assistance

An important and not the least factor of success is clarity, transparency, predictability of the mechanism for legal regulation of dispute resolution through international arbitration so that such a dispute is considered efficiently, quickly, confidentially, with minimal risks of cancellation of the decision made and maximum guarantees for its implementation, and even preferably inexpensively.