ICC Court amends its Rules to enhance transparency and efficiency

The International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC Court) has announced important amendments to the ICC Rules of Arbitration (Rules) with the aim of further increasing the efficiency and transparency of ICC arbitrations.

The revised rules will apply from 1 March 2017. They provide that expedited procedure rules will automatically apply to all arbitrations with amounts in dispute below US$2 million and to cases involving higher amounts on an opt-in basis.

Features of the Expedited Rules

Under the Expedited Procedure Rules, the ICC Court will normally appoint a sole arbitrator, irrespective of any contrary term of the arbitration agreement. Awards must be made in six months from the case management conference, with extensions granted only in limited and justified circumstances.

Under the Rules there will be no Terms of Reference and the tribunal will have discretion to decide the case on documents only, with no hearing, no requests to produce documents and no examination of witnesses. The quality control on awards - performed by the ICC Court and its Secretariat through the scrutiny of the award - will however be maintained at its long-established highest level. Finally, a scale providing for significantly reduced fees will apply under the Expedited Procedure Rules.

Full Article: http://www.iccwbo.org/News/Articles/2016/ICC-Court-amends-its-Rules-to-enhance-transparency-and-efficiency