Dispute Management & Arbitration Clauses

Hardship and Force Majeure in International Commercial Contracts - Dossier XVII

International Trade has a term used for unforeseen events which makes completion of the contract impossible or impracticable, this is known as a Force Majeure, and this is often linked with a Hardship clause. Legislation is provided by the national bodies which make rules to help deal with the issues around non-completion of a contract but the specific solutions adopted in domestic laws vary substantially from one country to another.

The complexity of global trade has greatly increased the number of situations where a party can invoke Force Majeure or hardship. The details and nature of a Force Majeure or hardship falls onto the Parties to agree and look for contractual clauses which can regulate these issues in conformity with their needs.

The Secretariat's Guide to ICC Arbitration

Arbitration is vital to businesses trading internationally, as any dispute or failing to supply brings problems and an inevitable broken business relationship and this means loss of market activity at times when often sustainable markets are vital to growth. ICC Rules of Arbitration has been written by members of the Secretariat of the ICC International Court of Arbitration.

Article-by-article commentary on the 2012 Rules, culminating in a detailed Guide:

Many aspects of ICC arbitration provides statistics on;

Sets-out out a roadmap for ICC arbitration users;

Conducting arbitration proceedings effectively

This is a great reference tool for both experienced and new practitioners.

Standard ICC Arbitration Clauses (Free resource)

Businesses sometimes find themselves in contractual difficulties with their contract. However, they can be finally settled under the Rules of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce by one or more arbitrators appointed in accordance with the ICC Rules of Arbitration.

This free clause can be adapted by the parties to the contract to fit the particular circumstances. For example, the parties may wish to stipulate how many arbitrators, ICC Arbitration Rules favour a sole arbitrator but it is easy to adapt to the contract needs. It may be needed to stipulate the place and language of the arbitration and the law applicable to the merits. The ICC Arbitration Rules do not limit the parties’ free choice of the place and language of the arbitration or the law governing the contract.

Please note care must be taken to avoid any risk of ambiguity when adapting any clauses that impact on your contracts. Unclear wording in the clause will cause uncertainty or delay and can hinder or even compromise the dispute resolution process.

Available here as a Download