Arbitration Team Coffee Break - April 2022

Events

Instituto Peruano de Arbitraje (IPA) – 30-31 March 2022 – II International Conference of Arbitration and Intellectual Property

On 30 and 31 March 2022, the second Conference of Arbitration and Intellectual Property organized by the Instituto Peruano de Arbitraje took place. Federica Bocci gave a presentation at one of the two panels of the first day about the kinds of IP disputes that can be resolved through arbitration. In particular, Federica provided a general overview of the IP subject matter that can be considered arbitrable. She also compared arbitration with the State Courts litigations. The crucial question of which of these two dispute resolution methods is better suited to manage IP disputes does not have a clear answer. Federica concludes that there might be openings for arbitration to be used more in IP disputes, especially for those relatively new categories stemming from the digital economy. Watch the first day of conference here.

News

DIAC and LCIA Joint Press Release

The DIAC and LCIA recently issued a joint press release concerning the administration of cases by the two Institutions. Check out Henry Quinlan’s LinkedIn post on the rule changes that allowed for this. 

HCCH 2022 Survey for arbitral institutions on the application of the HCCH Principles on Choice of Law in International Commercial Contracts

The Permanent Bureau of the Hague Conference on Private International Law published the results of its 2022 survey for arbitral institutions on the application of the HCCH Principles on Choice of Law in International Commercial Contracts. An infographic of the survey has also been made available. As the survey clarifies: “[it] presents a non-exhaustive list of arbitral institutions that either have incorporated the HCCH Principles into their own institutional rules or are advertising or facilitating their use in other ways […] The third survey on the HCCH Principles reveals increasing awareness and wider use of the HCCH Principles among international arbitral institutions and tribunals. The survey further explores the practice in relation to the law applicable in the absence of parties’ choice of law in arbitration proceedings and generates positive results in relation to the necessity for an international legal instrument to assist arbitrators, in the absence of parties’ choice of law, in determining the applicable law to the merits of the dispute.”

Book reviews

International Intellectual Property Arbitration – Kluwer Law International

Trevor Cook, Alejandro Garcia

Although this book is over ten years’ old, it is very helpful and for certain aspects a precursor of a number of issues that are very up to date, such as the arbitrability of disputes arising from the management of blockchain platforms. The authors covered the multijurisdictional nature of IP disputes and outlined in a very thorough manner the whole potential lifecycle for an arbitration concerning IP matters. Starting from the issue of “arbitrability” of IP matters, the authors guide the readers through:

• the limitation and benefit of international arbitrations (as opposed to State Court litigations);
• the drafting of arbitration agreements and the legal and regulatory framework of IP arbitration;
• the procedural aspects of international arbitrations (including confidentiality issues); and
• the set aside, recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards.

As the book was first published more than a decade ago, it will be interesting to understand the progress or regression made regarding arbitration in the IP industry.

Good to know

Corporate arbitration and foreign-based arbitration clause

Is it possible to include an arbitration clause in the corporate bylaws of an Italian company devolving company disputes to an arbitrator body based abroad? Recent case law seems to suggest it is. Check out the latest report by Matteo Ronchi and Davide Lagni.