Looking at Arbitration Through a Comparative Lens: General Principles and Specific Issues

Abstract

This article explores various issues of arbitration from a comparative perspective. It compares and contrasts jurisdictions in the East and the West, as well as those of a common law and civil law legal system. Eastern jurisdictions refer to prominent Asian jurisdictions such as China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and Korea. The West refers to major Continental European jurisdictions such as France, Germany and Switzerland, and prominent common law jurisdictions such as the UK, the US, Australia and Canada. This article argues that three driving forces influence issues of arbitration in these jurisdictions: (1) the cultural differences between the West and the East; (2) the differences in the practice embedded in common law and civil law legal systems; (3) the traditions within the dispute resolution system, which includes the attitudes towards adopting mediation. These forces contribute to the differences on various issues of arbitration, such as the conceptualisation of arbitration as a form of ADR, procedure of arbitral tribunals, juridification of arbitration and med-arb.