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International Commercial Arbitration : National Legislation & Treaties

National Legislation

In ICA, national laws tend to be very narrow related to the issues, but they remain important for ICA practitioners.

A growing number of countries have adopted versions of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law's Model on International Commercial Arbitration, or UNCITRAL Model Law. Although UNCITRAL is frequently referenced, it is no, in itself, binding. It has proven to be a very helpful and cohesive instrument for the field, however.

UNCITRAL Model Law

France

Code of Civil Procedure 

Book IV - Arbitration In force 14 May 1981

 Switzerland

Switzerland's Federal Code on Private International Law (CPIL) 1987

Swiss Chamber's Arbitration Institution

United Kingdom

Arbitration Act 1996

United States of America

Federal Arbitration Act (FAA)

See Federal Rules of Evidence §§702-705

Treaties

Conventions and Treaties signed by signatories of states bind private actors to the terms of that agreement through the domestic application of the treaty provisions. These agreements may be bilateral (between two countries/states) or multilateral (between three or more countries/states).

Only some places where these treaties and agreements are republished are considered "official" and having a binding version of that agreement. Frequently, they are published officially online through particular websites sponsored by the international organization(s) that created the agreement.

Compilations were frequent before the days of electronic research, and these compilations are frequently published in loose-leaf format. Additionally, treaties and conventions may also be found individually.

This is not a complete list of all treaties, but offers a broad starting ground for research. See also: "International Agreements & Conventions" and "Legal Authorities Background."