The claimant sought to enforce an international arbitration award against the defendant in respect of the provision of accommodation for Hajj pilgrims. A without notice order had been made to allow its enforcement, but that had been set aside.
Held: When asked to review an arbitration award made internationally under the Convention, it was important for the court to establish which standard of proof had been applied in the arbitration proceedings. Here there had been no agreement as to the applicable law, and the tribunal had applied ‘those transnational general principles and usages which reflect the fundamental requirements of justice in international trade and the concept of good faith in business’. There is no provision in the Convention requiring a party wishing to challenge an award to make that challenge in the country in which the award was made, and the claimant had itself chosen London to seek to enforce the award. Any discretion to enforce an award despite a continuing objection must be a narrow one. The words of the section were intended to act as a limitation on such a power not to ennable one.
Ward LJ, Rix LJ, Moore-Bick LJ
[2009] EWCA Civ 755, Times 24-Aug-2009, [2009] 30 EG 67, [2009] 2 CLC 84, 125 Con LR 37, [2010] 1 All ER 592
Bailii
Arbitration Act 1996 101, New York Convention
England and Wales
Citing:
Appeal from – Dallah Real Estate and Tourism Holding Company v Ministry of Religious Affairs, Government of Pakistan ComC 1-Aug-2008
The claimant had obtained an arbitration award, and a without notice order for its enforcement. The defendant applied for it to be set aside on the basis that no law had been agreed which would set the basis for the arbitration, and that the award . .
Cited – Svenska Petroleum Exploration Ab v Lithuania and Another (No 2) CA 13-Nov-2006
The defendant state could not now claim state immunity to avoid enforcement of an arbitration award, having agreed to the reference to arbitration in writing.
Held: A person against whom an award has been made is not bound to challenge it . .
Cited – Yukos Oil Company v Dardana Ltd CA 18-Apr-2002
The claimant sought to enforce an arbitration award made in Sweden, even though it had yet to give its final adjudication on the defence under the New York Convention argued by the defendant.
Held: The Act cannot have been intended to give the . .
Cited – Kanoria and others v Guinness CA 21-Feb-2006
Lord Phillips CJ expressed his own doubts about whether section 103(2) gives the court a broad discretion to allow enforcement of an award where one of the grounds set out in that subsection has been established. . .
Distinguished – Watt (Formerly Carter) v Ahsan HL 21-Nov-2007
The claimant was a Pakistani member of the Labour Party. He had sought selection as parliamentary candidate, but allegations had been made about behaviour of members in the Pakistani community in his ward and the local party had been suspended. A . .
Cited – Svenska Petroleum Exploration Ab v Government of the Republic of Lithuania and Another ComC 11-Jan-2005
The claimant sought enforcement of a final award. The Government of Lithuania had not attempted to challenge the tribunal’s first award in Denmark.
Held: Nigel Teare QC said that that, where a person has unsuccessfully contested the issue of . .
Cited – Paklito Investment Ltd v Klockner East Asia Ltd 1993
(Hong Kong) The plaintiff sought to enforce a Chinese arbitration award. The other party said it had not been allowed to present its case and resisted enforcement.
Held: The defence succeeded. The court was still asked to to enforce it under . .
Cited – China Agribusiness Development Corporation v Balli Trading 1998
The plaintiff sought to enforce a Chinese award following an arbitration in which the arbitration rules current at the time when the dispute arose rather than the old rules current at the time of agreement had been applied.
Held: The court . .
Cited – Carl Zeiss Stiftung v Rayner and Keeler Ltd (No 2) HL 1966
An agency had to be proved in a search to identify an entity which the law recognised (a) existed and (b) was legally responsible for the acts in issue in the proceedings. The House was asked whether the fact that an issue had already been . .
Cited – IPCO (Nigeria) Ltd v Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation ComC 27-Apr-2005
A Nigerian arbitration award between two Nigerian companies was first subject to proceedings in Nigeria to set aside the award and subsequently to enforcement proceedings in England.
Held: Gross J refused to consider immediate enforcement. He . .
Cited – Peterson Farms Inc v C and M Farming Ltd ComC 4-Feb-2004
The claimant sought a declaration that an award made in an ICC arbitration was made without jurisdiction and void. . .
Cited – Peterson Farms v C and M Farming Ltd and Another ComC 5-Sep-2003
. .
Cited by:
Appeal from. – Dallah Real Estate and Tourism Holding Company v The Ministry of Religious Affairs, Government of Pakistan SC 3-Nov-2010
The claimant had achieved a judgment in arbitration proceedings abroad against the respondent foreign government regarding contracts providing services for the Holy Places in Saudi Arabia. The contract made no express provision for the nationality . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Arbitration, International
Updated: 11 November 2021; Ref: scu.349086
