Arbitration’s flexibility makes it uniquely suited to resolving disputes in the remote world which we now inhabit.
Parties can, for example, opt for a document-only arbitration or for all hearings to take place by video conference. E-filing and email correspondence have long been standard features and, in a joint statement last month, arbitral institutions have been quick to reassure parties that they are doing all they can to adapt further to the “new normal”. Despite this show of unity, rivalry between international arbitral institutions will remain fierce and this competition is now likely to be reflected in their methods of doing business just as much as in their rules.
