Public Policy In International Arbitration

International arbitration has become the preferred method for resolving cross-border business disputes. It offers neutrality, confidentiality, flexibility, and enforceability across many jurisdictions, thanks to treaties such as the New York Convention. Yet a final safeguard is reserved for even the most arbitration-friendly courts: public policy. This concept operates as a limit on what courts will tolerate when asked to recognize or enforce an arbitral award. For non-experts (and even some experts), "public policy" can feel like a black box—open-ended and unpredictable.

Functionally, public policy marks the outer boundary of what courts will countenance when supervising, recognizing, or enforcing awards. The focal questions are often the scope of public policy (domestic vs. international ordre public), the standard of review, the interaction between public policy and mandatory rules, and remedial responses when breaches of public policy are identified, such as