Originally from American Review of International Arbitration - ARIA

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INTRODUCTION

     New York City is one of the world’s leading centers of international business,
trade and finance. Its accessibility from anywhere around the world equals or
exceeds that of any other world-class city. New York enjoys a legal system with a
well developed body of commercial law and a sophisticated legal community that
is well versed in international business and legal issues. Its laws and courts
enforce agreements to arbitrate and support the autonomy of the arbitral process.
Moreover, its courts have adopted a clear policy of deference to awards issued by
arbitral tribunals.¹ New York, then, is a logical seat for international commercial
arbitrations.

     However, some practitioners and commentators have questioned the
desirability of New York as a seat for international arbitration upon the ground
that the “manifest disregard of law” doctrine renders international awards issued
in New York more vulnerable to being set aside.² Given the otherwise clear
benefits of arbitrating international commercial disputes in New York, the
International Commercial Disputes Committee (the “Committee”) considered it
important to evaluate whether the expressed concern regarding the manifest
disregard doctrine is justified. In particular, the Committee has examined whether
the doctrine as applied by New York courts renders New York a less desirable
venue than other major international arbitration seats such as Paris, London,
Switzerland, or Hong Kong.