New York Arbitration Week

NYIAC and CIArbNY are pleased to continue their joint leadership of the Virtual New York Arbitration Week (NYAW) for the second year. NYAW 2021 will showcase New York as a leading global seat for international arbitration and center for thought leadership, and will be presented in a format designed to take advantage of being both online and in-person.

The week of events will include a featured two-panel program presented by JAMS, and programs by the American Arbitration Association/International Centre for Dispute Resolution (AAA/ICDR), the International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (CPR), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), ArbitralWomen, SIAC, Praelium, the New York City Bar, Young International Arbitration Practitioners of New York, the American Society of International Law, and Silicon Valley Arbitration and Mediation Center (SVAMC).

The capstone of New York Arbitration Week will be the Fordham Conference on International Arbitration and Mediation focusing on "Reflections on Arbitral Assumptions."

Featured Panels:

New York Stories: Career Options, Opportunities and Challenges in International Arbitration
Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021 | 9:00 AM New York | Networking Reception to Follow | Presented by Arbitral Women

This program will focus on the numerous career changes we have recently witnessed in the international arbitration community as well as the exceptionally ambitious and diverse career opportunities New York has to offer, which has allowed many to broaden their professional perspectives

Moderators:

• Yasmine Lahlou | Partner, Chaffetz Lindsay; Board of Directors, ArbitralWomen – New York
• Louise Woods | Partner, Vinson & Elkins; Vice President, ArbitralWomen – London

Speakers: 

• Chris Alberti | Chief of ADR and General Counsel, Saudi Center for Commercial Arbitration (SCCA); former Assistant Vice President, International Centre for Dispute Resolution (ICDR) – Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
• Lorraine M. Brennan, Esq. | International Arbitrator and Mediator, JAMS – New York
• Dana MacGrath | Independent Arbitrator, MacGrath Arbitration; President, ArbitralWomen; previously Investment Manager and In-House Legal Counsel, Omni Bridgeway – New York
• Dr. Friedrich Rosenfeld | Partner, Hanefeld Law Firm; Global Adjunct Professor of Law, NYU Law School in Paris – Hamburg, Germany
• E. Rainbow Willard | Trial Attorney, U.S. Department of Justice, Office of International Affairs; previously Counsel, Chaffetz Lindsey LLP – Washington, D.C.

Changing Roles or Changing Robes: Perceptions and Realities of Judicial Experience in International Arbitration
Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021 | 11:00 AM New York | 4:00 PM London | 10:30 PM Bangalore

The panel will speak from their own experience as a former-judge arbitrator, sitting judge and in-house counsel regarding the role of judicial experience in international arbitration. The panel will review and discuss some of the concerns that practitioners and institutions have raised, identifying the perception of a former-judge arbitrator and whether this is the experience in practice. The panel will also examine whether the underlying concerns relate to arbitrator background, practice and jurisdictional experience with civil vs. common law processes, the role of witnesses and discovery, and how active an arbitrator will or will not perform during the hearing. The goal of the panel is not to come to a conclusion, instead it is to recognize assumptions and challenge perceptions.

Moderator:
Hon. Ariel E. Belen (Ret.), FCIArb | International Mediator and Arbitrator, JAMS – New York
Speakers:

• Justice Indu Malhotra (Former Judge, Supreme Court of India) | International Arbitrator – Bangalore
• Rt. Hon. Lord Neuberger of Abbotsbury | International Arbitrator, One Essex Chambers – London
• Hon. Justice Saliann Scarpulla | Associate Justice, Appellate Division, First Department, Supreme Court of the State of New York – New York
• Abby Cohen Smutny | Global Head of International Arbitration Practice, White & Case – Washington, D.C.

Rethinking Non-Adjudicative Dispute Resolution Processes in International Arbitration – Where are We and Where Do We Go from Here?
Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021 | 12:00 PM New York | 5:00 PM London

Arbitrators and arbitral institutions are increasingly taking a systematic look at when and how to use mediation and other non-adjudicative dispute resolution techniques to assist in the settlement of international arbitrations before a hearing. The tides of international arbitration are indeed changing -- there is much debate regarding how mediation, arbitrator settlement facilitation and other collaborative processes can best complement the arbitral process. This Panel will discuss some of the on-going efforts and the many issues – such as the appropriate role of the arbitrator -- raised by pre-arbitration, concurrent and integrated processes, including the Mixed Mode Task Force and the ICC’s Task Force on ADR and Arbitration. Leaders in these efforts will bring us up to date and inside counsel users will share their perspectives.

Moderator:
Conna A. Weiner, Esq. FCIArb | International Arbitrator and Mediator, JAMS – New York
Speakers:

• Chiann Bao | International Arbitrator, Arbitration Chambers – Hong Kong
• Javier Oroz Coppel | Chief Risk Officer and General Secretary, AXA Mexico – Mexico City
• Fiona Meany | Global Director of Litigation, Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated – London
• Edna Sussman | International Arbitrator and Mediator, Sussman ADR – New York

Launch of IMI-CCA-Straus Mixed Mode Task Force
Conference on International Arbitration and Mediation: Key Issues in International Dispute Resolution
Friday, Nov. 19, 2021 | 9:35 AM New York | Presented by Fordham University

Are there creative dispute resolution provisions that can be included in contracts? Would parties benefit from a process facilitator to help them diagnose and design a bespoke process? Would greater use of nonbinding evaluations be helpful in assisting the parties achieve an amicable resolution? Should arbitrators play a role in facilitating settlement and, if so, how? What is the latest thinking on med-arb? Is interaction between the arbitrator and the mediator permissible and, if so, how should the process be protected? Are there enforceability issues that must be considered? At this session, the learning that has been developed and published by the Mixed Mode Task Force will be discussed.

Moderator:
Kathleen Paisley | Partner, Ambos Law & Independent Arbitrator – Brussels & New York
Speakers:

• Laura A. Kaster | Independent Arbitrator and Mediator – Princeton, NJ
• Jeremy Lack | Independent Arbitrator and Mediator – Geneva
• Dilyara Nigmatullina | ADR Postdoctoral Researcher & Accredited Mediator, University of Antwerp Faculty of Law – Antwerp
• Thomas J. Stipanowich, Esq. | William H. Webster Chair in Dispute Resolution & Independent Arbitrator, Straus Institute, Pepperdine Caruso School of Law; Mediator, Arbitrator and Referee/Special Master, JAMS – Malibu
• Edna R. Sussman | Independent Arbitrator and Mediator & ADR Practitioner-in-Residence, Fordham Law School – New York