Devoted to Corporate Attorneys, Corporate Lawyers, and Corporate Counsel

When international business contracts create cross-border disputes, arbitration might be the choice for resolving controversies between parties.

Arbitration awards are usually more enforceable across national borders than decisions of a domestic court in any particular country. 

However, in order to enforce arbitration awards, parties might consider:

1.  Drafting contract language to ensure there are procedures for the arbitration process.  If a contract lacks arbitration procedures, the parties can enter into a separate agreement when a dispute arises, but it may be difficult to come to an agreement at that time when there might already be a conflict in the relationship.  Popular institutions with procedures for arbitration include:  International Centre for Dispute Resolution, International Chamber of Commerce, London Court of International Arbitration.

2.  Performing due diligence to identify liquid assets against which an arbitration award can be enforced.  If a party has no assets or its assets are in a jurisdiction where enforcement is a problem, then time and expense would be incurred in obtaining an arbitration award that is later discovered not to be enforceable. 

3.  Avoiding or preserving grounds for contesting enforcement.  Some grounds for vacating an award include:  invalid arbitration agreement, lack of due process, improper tribunal, not binding award.  If a party anticipates a lost, it might objects errors during the proceeding.