Originally from: Soft Law in International Arbitration

I. Introduction

1. The purpose of these Guidelines is to provide a succinct and accessible approach to the drafting of international arbitration clauses. Poorly drafted arbitration clauses may be unenforceable and often cause unnecessary cost and delay. By considering these Guidelines, contract drafters should be able to ensure that their arbitration clauses are effective and adapted to their needs.

2. The Guidelines are divided into five sections (in addition to this introduction). The first section offers basic guidelines on what to do and not to do. The second section addresses optional elements that should be considered when drafting arbitration clauses. The third section addresses multi-tier dispute resolution clauses providing for negotiation, mediation and arbitration. The fourth section discusses the drafting of arbitration clauses for multiparty contracts, and the fifth section considers the drafting of arbitration clauses in situations involving multiple, but related contracts.

II. Basic Drafting Guidelines

Guideline 1: The parties should decide between institutional and ad hoc arbitration.

Comments:

3. The first choice facing parties drafting an arbitration clause is whether to opt for institutional or ad hoc arbitration.