Originally from The MENA Leading Arbitrators’ Guide to International Arbitration

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I. INTRODUCTION

Arbitral institutions play a key role in the administration of justice and contributing to the advancement of the rule of law. 

The first arbitral institution, the London Court of International Arbitration (“LCIA”),    can be dated all the way back to 1892. Since then, the number of arbitral institutions across the world has grown exponentially.  In the Middle East and North Africa (“MENA”) region, while there were only three arbitral institutions administering arbitration proceedings in the early 1990s, as of 2016, there were more than 49 arbitral institutions  in the region.

In the MENA region, resolving disputes by reference to a neutral third party has historically been an anchored tradition. This approach has its roots in cultural practices  and religious  precepts, which tend to favour amicable and private out-of-court resolution of disputes.