Emergency Arbitration

Abstract Emergency arbitration enables a party to seek urgent relief from an emergency arbitrator during the period required for the constitution of an arbitral tribunal. The procedure is not a substitute for expedited or summary proceedings. It simply enables a party to bypass national courts and obtain pre-tribunal relief in the form of interim measures even before an arbitral tribunal has been formed. The limited mandate of the emergency arbitrator is to determine whether the circumstances warrant urgent relief within the period required for tribunal formation. Studies have revealed that emergency arbitrators have adopted inconsistent approaches to emergency arbitration proceedings. Parties contemplating emergency arbitration are thus faced with uncertainty both as to procedure and prospects, and a lack of clarity as to how to formulate an application for emergency measures. By identifying commonalities between emergency arbitration rules, this book aims to promote greater uniformity in the practice of emergency arbitration, thereby giving parties greater control and certainty in bringing and defending applications for emergency measures. As emergency arbitration rules confer wide discretion on the emergency arbitrator, this uniformity is promoted whilst at the same time recognising, where appropriate, the need for an element of flexibility to be maintained. The book contains seven parts. Part I sets out an overview of emergency arbitration. Parts II to V move through all phases of an emergency arbitration, starting with pre-commencement considerations and ending with enforcement. Part VI is dedicated to emergency arbitration in investment treaty arbitration. Finally, in Part VII, the future of emergency arbitration is explored.