International Arbitration in Switzerland is an excellent analysis of the new federal statute governing international arbitration that went into effect on January 1, 1989. Messrs. Bucher and Tschanz, a law professor at the University of Geneva and a practicing attorney in Geneva respectively, offer a balanced, clear, and concise appraisal of the Swiss Private International Law.

The book contains eleven chapters in a numbered paragraph format, which allows easy cross-referencing. The authors start with a general overview of recent developments in international arbitration and the background of the new Swiss law. Although the Concordat (the Intercantonal Convention of Arbitration) continues to govern domestic arbitration, it had grown outdated for international arbitration. The new rules provide greater freedom to the parties and wide powers to the arbitral tribunals while minimizing judicial control. The authors envisage quicker and more convenient arbitral proceedings that will also provide a greater degree of predictability.

Chapter two discusses the scope of application of the Act: it applies if the place of arbitration is Switzerland and only if at least one of the parties resides outside of Switzerland. In chapter three, the authors expand on the validity of the agreement to arbitrate. The Act allows arbitration of disputes regarding property or financial interests, subject to public policy concerns. A state, bound by an agreement to arbitrate, may not avail itself of jurisdictional immunity. Also, the arbitration agreement must be evidenced in some written form, such as an arbitration clause, a telex, or a telegram.

The commencement of the arbitral proceeding is addressed in chapter four. Basically, the Act allows the parties complete freedom to determine the method of constituting the arbitral tribunal. The selection of arbitrators, as discussed in chapter five, is similarly unrestricted. The only required qualification under the Act is that the arbitrators be independent while carrying out their duties. One interesting feature of the Swiss law is that arbitrators accept responsibilities of diligence, confidentiality, and impartiality in accepting an appointment. Failure to meet these obligations empowers the parties to remove the arbitrators or to challenge the final award. The procedure for challenging, removing, and replacing arbitrators is also explained in this chapter.