The UK Supreme Court published their decision in the case of
Enka Insaat ve Sanayi AS v OOO Insurance Company Chubb [2020] UKSC
38 on Friday, 9 October 2020. The decision will undoubtedly
influence drafting decisions on international contracts going
forward, and cause parties to live contracts to pause and consider
their next steps.
This judgment also provides guidance to the English Courts in
determining the governing law of an arbitration agreement in the
absence of an express clause. It also clarifies the Court's
authority in granting anti-suit relief in relation to arbitration
clauses with a designated seat in England.
Background
A Russian power plant was severely damaged by fire in early
2016. The appellant (Chubb) was the insurer to the owner of the
power plant. The respondent (Enka), a Turkish engineering company,
was one of contractors. Enka's contract for the project
contained an arbitration agreement as the dispute resolution
mechanism with the
