An Arbitrator's Perspective: A Few Reflections about the Case Administration under the Swiss Rules - Ten Years of Swiss Rules of International Arbitration - ASA Special Series No. 44

Author(s):

Frank Spoorenberg

Page Count:

12 pages

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1 PDF Download

Published:

October, 2014

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This paper stems from a panel discussion during the ASA
Conference of 31 January 2014. The panel was asked the following

question: “Is the model of an ‛institution light’ with a decentralized

administration of arbitral proceedings a suitable one, for instance as

regards accessibility, securing procedural efficiency and cost control?”

The panel was further asked to give some thoughts as to the way

forward for the Swiss Chambers’ Arbitration Institution (also the

“Institution”).

This paper intends to reflect the author’s contribution during the

conference and to continue the discussion. It first examines whether

the Swiss Rules arbitrations are correctly labeled as a “light touch”

approach to administered arbitrations and, if so, what the

consequences are in terms of efficiency and accessibility (1). Then, it

analyzes whether the decentralization is indeed an issue (2) and

discusses four possible improvements (3).

1. NATURE OF THE CASE ADMINISTRATION UNDER THE

SWISS RULES

1.1. The Swiss Rules Represent a “Light Touch” Approach to

Administered Arbitrations

Swiss Rules1 arbitrations can be categorized as “light touch”

administration, whether with respect to the organization in place or to

the Institution’s interference with the arbitration process.

The Institution is composed of the Court of Arbitration (the

“Court”) and the Secretariat of the Court (the “Secretariat”). The

character of the Swiss Chambers’ Arbitration Institution, in particular

the absence of any scrutiny of the award apart from the decision on