As Latin America continues to grow in
importance as a region for trade and investment, this year’s 7th annual Miami conference on
international commercial arbitration will study developments on the continent
from a variety of perspectives.
The conference, under the auspices of the
ICC International Court of Arbitration, will be held 1-3 November in Miami South Beach, and should be of particular interest to
practicing lawyers, corporate counsel, arbitrators, mediators, academics and
professionals doing business in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The sessions will be held in both English and Spanish with simultaneous
translation.
The number of participants has been growing
rapidly each year, with close to 300 people attending the 2008 conference. A
distinguished roster of speakers, including eminent lawyers and academics, will
participate in the two-day conference.
"The annual ICC Miami conference has become an important date in
the diary for arbitration users and practitioners," said John
Beechey, Chairman, ICC International Court of Arbitration. "This year,
against the backdrop of continuing worldwide economic turmoil, the conference
programme will include a roundtable discussion focussing upon issues which
could determine whether, and, if so, how, to arbitrate, or to use the arbitral
process to best advantage in such economic conditions. Together with KPMG
Forensic's UK Chairman, John Ellison, the President of the IBA, Fernando
Pelaez-Pier and Professor George A. Bermann of Columbia University School of
Law, participants will offer their assessments of the impact of the
financial crisis on the use of Arbitration."
During the last decade of economic growth,
international arbitration in Latin America has developed rapidly, with
particular achievements in Brazil
and Mexico.
One session will examine how the combination of international practices and
local habits have helped overcome local hostilities within the judiciary,
government and legal communities to develop a new legal market in those two
countries.
One particularly interesting discussion will revolve around the breach of the arbitration agreement as arbitral tribunals are often faced with the task of determining whether arbitration agreements between the parties have been breached. A mock case will illustrate how these issues are presented by counsel and analyzed by arbitrators.
Other sessions include one on arbitrating disputes involving natural resources and another on the latest legislation and case law related to arbitration in the Americas, as well as the latest developments in ICC Arbitration practice, including the status of the revision of the ICC Arbitration Rules.
“The success of arbitration in Latin America remains vulnerable. Events like the ICC annual conference in Miami contribute to protect it and to transform it into a fundamental element of economic and social development,” saidYves Derains, of Derains Gharavi Lazareff, Paris.
The conference will also feature an interactive debate between the panellists and the audience on the ethical principles that should govern the duties of arbitrators and arbitration practitioners involved in international arbitration.
A special meeting for young lawyers of 40 years of age and under will take place on Sunday 1 November.
Click here for the conference programme
and to register online.
For more information, please contact:
Jennie Irving
ICC Events
Tel: +33 1 49 53 28 70