ICCA 2026 Madrid

International Arbitration: Local, Global or Both?

XXVIIth ICCA Congress
12 - 15 April 2025

The XXVIIth ICCA Congress took place in Madrid from Sunday, 12 April to Wednesday, 15 April 2026 and focused on the theme “International Arbitration: Local, Global or Both?”.

View the full programme View the programme snapshot

View the Kluwer Arbitration Blog coverage

Draft Congress Papers

Each paper presented at the ICCA 2026 Madrid Congress will be featured in the next volume of the ICCA Congress Series. Congress delegates may access the speakers' draft papers below, using the password provided to them by email. If you attended the Congress but cannot locate the password, please contact us at bureau@arbitration-icca.org.

Please note that these versions should not be shared, quoted or cited. They will be removed from the ICCA website shortly after the Congress and replaced by final versions published in the ICCA Congress Series No. 23.

Panel 2: Arbitration as a Stabilizing Force in Today’s Geopolitical Landscape

David M. Bigge: A Brief History of Interstate Arbitration
Constantine Partasides KC: Arbitration as Peace-Maker: An example of success, and the Brčko Arbitration
Natalie L. Reid: Rethinking “Success” and “Failure” in Inter-State Peace-and-Security Arbitration

False

Panel 3: Local Ripples, Global Consequences: How Sanctions Affect Arbitration Proceedings

Nils Eliasson: Caught Between a Rock and a Hard Place: Navigating the Consequences of Sanctions on the Merits of Arbitral Proceedings
Anna Kozmenko: Sanctions and Procedure in Arbitration: Perspective on Access to Justice, Due Process and Countermeasures
Dr. Wei Sun: A Proposal for a Dedicated Convention to Systematically Address the Impact of Sanctions on International Arbitration
Diora Ziyaeva: No Safe Seat: Arbitration Under Expanding Sanctions Regimes

False

Panel 4: Right to Regulate – ESG & Climate Change

Saadia Bhatty: The Global South’s Contribution to Investment Law Reform and the Implications of the ICJ’s 2025 Advisory Opinion on Climate Change
Laurence Boisson De Chazournes: Climate Change, International investment law and the ICJ Advisory Opinion on Climate Change
Dr. Margie-Lys Jaime: New Developments on the Right to Regulate in ISDS: A State Perspective
Christian Leathley: The “Third Way”

False

Panel 5: Resolving Disputes Beyond Earth: Arbitration in the Age of Space Commerce

Rachael O’Grady: Revisiting the Case for an ICSOD Convention Ten Years On
Yi-Shun Teoh: China and the future of international space law and space disputes
Laura Yvonne Zielinski: Investor-State Disputes in the Space Sector: Past, Present and Future

False

Panel 6: Global Standards, Local Rules: Navigating Technical Disputes in International Arbitration

Gabriel Costa: Challenges of Producing Technical Evidence in Energy Sector Arbitrations: Reconciling International and Local
Carlos Iso Floren
Dr. Kourosh Kayvani - BSc, MEngSc, PhD, FIEAust, FTSE, MAE: An Engineering Expert Witness Perspective on Global Standards vs Local Rule in Construction Arbitration
Dr. Abayomi Okubote, FCIArb: Grounding Global Arbitration: Rethinking Context, Evidence, and Contractual Design in African Infrastructure Disputes

False

Panel 7: The Interplay Between Local Practice and Developing Universal Soft Law

Shahla Ali: Decentralized Harmonization and Agile Inclusivity in Soft Law-Making
Domitille Baizeau: Harmonising International Arbitration Practice Through Soft Law: Promises, Successes and Challenges
Thomas Clay: The Legislator Confronted with Soft Law and Local Practices: A French Perspective
Felipe Ossa G.: Established Local Practices and the Taking of Evidence in International Arbitration: Beyond the ’Culture Clash’ Narrative

False

Panel 8: Ethics and Soft Law: Are We Asking Too Much of Arbitrators and Counsel?

Jose I. Astigarraga
Michele Potestà: Arbitrator Ethics in Practice: The UNCITRAL Code of Conduct Three Years On
Catherine A Rogers: Enforceability, Professionalism, and the Legitimacy of International Arbitrator Ethics
Swee Yen Koh SC: The Future of Party Representative Ethics in International Arbitration: The ICCA Reports No. 9 and Beyond

False

Panel 9: Breaking Boundaries: The Evolving Role of Mediation and Conciliation

Laurie Achtouk-Spivak: Enabling And Unlocking Investor-State Mediation : The Rise Of International Legal Frameworks
Lady Justice Joyce Aluoch EBS,CBS (Rtd) Judge: BREAKING BOUNDARIES: The Evolving Role of Mediation and Conciliation
Paul Sills: Preparing the Parties, Designing the Process
Hiroyuki Tezuka: The Evolving and Increasing Role of Mediation and Conciliation in Japan and Asia

False

Panel 10: Unpacking Privilege: Practical Solutions for an Unsettled Issue in International Arbitration

Philippa Charles: Subjecting Privilege to Soft Law: A Meritorious Endeavour or an Abrogation of Responsibility?
Cristian Nitsch: Expectations on the Application of Legal Privilege to in House Legal Counsel in International Arbitration: An Insider’s View
Javier H. Rubinstein: Back to the Future: Standardizing the Attorney Client Privilege in International Arbitration Through the MFN Rule Proposed 25 Years Ago
Francis Xavier: Privilege and Attorney Secrecy in International Arbitration: Issues and Potential Solutions

False

Panel 11: Knowledge and Innovation: Scholarship, AI, and the Future of International Arbitration

Nakul Dewan KC: Keeping the Beehive: Managing Calibration and Threshold Risks of AI in Arbitration
Dr. Thomas Lehmann: Has technology diminished the human element in arbitration—and should this shift be embraced?
Prof. Dr. Carlos Alberto Matheus López: Possibilities and Limits of the Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Field of International Arbitration
Colin Seow: The ‘Uncanny Valley’ of Generative Artificial Intelligence in Arbitration
Natalia Marina Zibibbo: Disrupt or Be Disrupted: A Practitioner’s Guide to the Commercial and Strategic Imperatives of AI in Arbitration

False

Panel 12: The Promise of Diversity

Prof. Dr. Giorgio Fabio Colombo & Kun Fan: Legal Orientalism and the Promise of Diversity in International Arbitration
Mélida Hodgson: Structural Realities, Regional Perspectives, and Pathways Toward Cultural Sophistication
Dr. Hamed Merah: Rethinking Diversity in International Arbitration: From the Globalization of Consumption to the Globalization of Production
Marike Patrani Paulsson: The Promise (and Peril) of Diversity: Getting It Right in International Arbitration
Kiran Sanghera

False

Panel 13: From Paper to Purpose: Reviving Efficiency in Arbitration

Grant Hanessian and Tim Robbins: The Efficiency Enigma: A survey on the use arbitral efficiency tools
Dr. Levent Herberstein
H. E. Justice Sapna Jhangiani: Courting Efficiency in International Arbitration: What Can Arbitration Learn From Litigation?
Martina Polasek: Moving the Needle: Efficiency in Investment Arbitration

False

Panel 14: Procedural Integrity and Legitimacy: Building Confidence Across Jurisdictions

Prof. Georges Affaki: Procedural Integrity and Legitimacy - Building Confidence Across Jurisdictions
Diego P. Fernández Arroyo: Strange Bedfellows: The Quest for the Legitimacy of Arbitration beyond Domestic Procedural Traditions
Wilson Mwihuri: Due Process Paranoia or Prudent Management? Rebalancing Tribunal Passivity and Intervention in International Arbitration
Fabio Nunez Del Prado: Arbitrators and Invisible Loyalties: The Effect of Partisanship in the Legitimacy of International Arbitration

False

ICCA 2026 Madrid

International Arbitration: Local, Global or Both?

XXVIIth ICCA Congress12 - 15 April 2025

Draft Congress Papers

XXVIIth ICCA Congress
12 - 15 April 2025