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Precedent - Chapter 34 - Handbook on International Commercial Arbitration

Author(s): 
Peter Ashford
Page Count: 
2 pages
Media Description: 
PDF from "Handbook on International Commercial Arbitration"
Published: 
October, 2009
Jurisdictions: 
International
Practice Areas: 
Authority of the Arbitral Tribunal,
Powers of Arbitrators,
Commercial Disputes
Author Detail: 

Peter Ashford is Solicitor of the Supreme Court and a Partner at Cripps Harries Hall LLP and is Head of the firm's Commercial Peter Ashford is a Partner and Head of commercial dispute resolution in the leading United Kingdom Firm of Cripps Harries Hall LLP, Tunbridge Wells, United Kingdom. Mr. Ashford advises on a wide range of commercial disputes with a particular emphasis on substantial commercial contract disputes, especially those involving an international aspect, partnership and LLP disputes, professional issues for solicitors and professional negligence. He is particularly experienced in complex, high value claims and acts for many international clients. He handles disputes in court, arbitration, mediation and disputes without any formal process. Mr. Ashford received his training in London and qualified in 1986. He joined Cripps Harries Hall LLP in 1987 and became a partner in 1991.

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Originally from Handbook on International Commercial Arbitration

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It might be thought that this would be a short chapter both starting and concluding that there was no doctrine of precedent. Certainly, there is no formal doctrine of precedent with one arbitral tribunal obliged to follow decisions of other tribunals. This has sound underpinnings. The privacy and confidentiality of the arbitral process does not make ready access to previous decisions and the basis upon which those decisions were made, accessible. Furthermore, the benefit of international commercial arbitration is to assemble a tribunal from different jurisdictions for the very reason that they will bring with them expertise and wisdom based, in part, on their own backgrounds and experiences. Nevertheless, some decisions are widely reported and it is well known that there are regular seminars and symposia where views are exchanged and respected arbitrators discuss cases that they are involved with albeit on Chatham House rules. This leads to a commonality of approach or a distillation of good practice all of which has much to commend it.