Five × Five: Switzerland As A Center For International Arbitration (Video)

In a global economy, disputes rarely remain confined to one jurisdiction. International arbitration has therefore become one of the preferred mechanisms for resolving cross-border disputes. A dispute is “international” where it contains a foreign element, for example because the parties are based in different states, performance or assets are located abroad, or the arbitration has a seat outside one party’s home jurisdiction. Arbitration is today the preferred method for resolving international disputes, particularly because users value flexibility, specialist decision-makers, efficiency and enforceability. In that sense, arbitration can even be understood as a controlled privatisation of justice: the merits are decided by privately appointed arbitrators under agreed rules, while state courts continue to play an essential role in judicial assistance, limited review and enforcement.