The International Bar Association (IBA), Mediation Committee has recently published a draft version of rules for investor-state mediation. The scope of the Rules is as follows: These rules are designed for the mediation of investment–related differences and disputes involving States and State entities, whether or not they arise out of an agreement. These rules apply when: a) the mediating parties have agreed that these rules shall apply whether before or after the difference or dispute arises, or b) the mediating parties have authorized the mediator or another person or institution to design a mediation process and that mediator, person or institution adopts these rules in whole or in part. You may download the Rules (for free) here.

The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) will host its conference on International Arbitration in Latin America in Miami on November 11-13, 2012. The conference will include discussions on recent developments on arbitration in Latin America and is expected to attract 400 participants from 30 nationalities. Who should attend? Practicing lawyers, corporate counsel, arbitrators, mediators, academics and professionals involved in the conduct of business in Latin America and the Caribbean who wish to increase their understanding of international commercial arbitration in the region. Find out more information here.  

In a new article, Empowering Settlors: How Proper Language Can Increase the Enforceability of a Mandatory Arbitration Provision in a Trust, forthcoming in REAL PROPERTY, TRUST AND ESTATE LAW JOURNAL, available now in SSRN, Professor S.I. Strong discusses the increasingly important topic of trust arbitration. Here is the abstract: With hostile trust litigation reaching epidemic proportions, many people within the trust industry are interested in identifying new and less expensive ways to resolve trust-related disputes. Arbitration is often proposed as a possible alternative, although questions exist about whether and to what extent a mandatory arbitration provision found in a trust will be considered enforceable by a court. Up until now, most commentary in this area of law has focused on purely jurisprudential issues, with little attention being paid to the practical efforts that settlors can make to increase the enforceability of arbitration provisions found in trusts. This Article takes a slightly different approach to the question of trust arbitration in that it analyzes the extent to which a settlor can overcome the various legal challenges facing mandatory trust arbitration through appropriate use of language in the trust. In so doing, this Article not only discusses the opinions of both courts and commentators, it also analyzes the effectiveness of various model arbitration clauses specially drafted by two of the world’s leading arbitral institutions, the American Arbitration Association (AAA) and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), for use in trusts. Although these provisions have been in existence since 2003 and 2008 respectively, no commentator has yet discussed them in any depth. This Article fills that gap, providing settlors and trustees with practical, yet theoretically sound, advice on how to draft an enforceable arbitration provision in a trust. In so doing, the Article also introduces a number of relevant judicial opinions that have not yet entered the legal literature. The full article can be downloaded (for free) here. Other papers by Professor S.I. Strong are here.

Fulbright & Jaworski, LLP has recently published its 2012 International Arbitration Report, Issue 1. The issue includes the following topics: China-Related Arbitration Agreements, a Comparative Study of the French and English Arbitration Acts, Regulation 11/2001 Reform Update, and Section 1782 Case Update. You may download the Report (for free) here.