Originally from American Review of International Arbitration - ARIA

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I.     The Problem 
II.     The Exemption from the Conflict of Laws Rules in Effect at the Seat of the Arbitral Tribunal 
         1)     The Traditional Doctrine 
         2)     The New Doctrine 
                 a)     New National and International Legislation 
                 b)     Arbitration Rules of Arbitration Institutions 
         3)     An Assessment of the New Doctrine 
III.     The Exemption from the Procedural Rules in Effect at the Seat of the Arbitral Tribunal 
          1)     The Traditional Doctrine 
                   a)     Rules of Procedure of a Public Policy or of a Mandatory Character 
                           (i)     Public Policy Procedural Rules of the Forum 
                           (ii)     Mandatory Procedural Rules of the Arbitration Institution 
                   b)     Non-Mandatory Rules of Procedure at the Disposal both of the Parties and the Arbitral Tribunal
                           (iii)     Party-established Rules of Procedure
                           (iv)     Arbitrator-determined Rules of Procedure 
                           (v)     Non-mandatory Supplementary Rules of the Arbitration Institution 
                           (vi)     Non-mandatory, Supplementary Rules of the Forum
                   c)     Conclusion
         2)     The New Doctrine 
         3)     A Critique of the New Doctrine and Conclusion
IV.     The Exemption from the Substantive Law to be Applied: The so-called Lex Mercatoria 
         1)     No Complete Set of Rules Susceptible of Solving an Intricate Dispute in International Business Law 
         2)     Rules Embodied in International Treaties and International Customs as Integral Parts of the National Proper Law of Contract 
         3)     The Difficulties in Devising the Rules of the Lex Mercatoria 
                  a)     The Indefinite Purview of Comparative Research 
                  b)     The Need for Comparative Research: A Complication of the Arbitrator's Mission
                  c)     The Failure of Comparative Research: The Absence of a Common Core 
                  d)     The Transgression of the Borderline to Ex aequo et bono and Amiable Composition Awards 
         4)     The Absence of a Defined International Public Policy
V.     Summary 

I.     THE PROBLEM

This Festschrift is devoted to Hans Smit — a long-standing advocate of international commercial arbitration. His friends and colleagues who contribute to this Festschrift will probably share his opinion that international arbitration, in many situations, seems best suited to settling international business disputes.