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You may disagree with another commercial entity regarding a business issue when you run a business. For example, you may have an agreement with a company for services and cannot agree on a contractual clause such as the hourly rate or applicable law. If so, you should resolve your commercial dispute swiftly and amicably. Sometimes, this requires that you take Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) such as arbitration, particularly if you have an arbitration clause in any arbitration agreement. This is where you both appoint a sole arbitrator or panel of arbitrators to decide how to settle the dispute. They make a binding decision, which you both must follow.
This guide outlines how to resolve commercial disputes.
You might use the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) for your arbitration. They have LCIA arbitration rules you can follow, which detail, for example, about providing your email address and accompanying documents and doing so electronically. The rules also detail registration fees, legal representatives, and the commencement date of arbitration. This article will explain how to request arbitration using the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) Rules with the LCIA Court.
What Are the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) Arbitration Rules?
The London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) is a global institution which carries out commercial dispute resolution. It does this for any system of law, so it does not matter where the commercial dispute occurs. The LCIA offers alternative dispute resolution methods (ADR), such as arbitration and mediation. To use the LCIA services, you do not need to be a court member; instead, you pay the relevant fees to do so.
How Do I Request Arbitration Using the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) Rules?
Article 1 of the LCIA Arbitration Rules explains how your business can request arbitration to attempt to resolve a commercial dispute. The name of this article is ‘Request for Arbitration’.
To request arbitration using the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) Rules, you must give the registrar, in electronic format according to article 4.1 of the LCIA Rules, a written request to do so. You do this as the claimant, and it needs to detail several things, which include the following:
- your full name, nationality and complete contact details and the same for any representative you may have so that the Court can send the arbitration documents to you both;
- all paperwork which details the terms of the Arbitration Agreement, which could include contracts in addition to the Agreement;
- a statement that details your claim against the Respondent, which should consist of what the dispute is about, including the circumstances and what you believe the monetary value of it is;
- a statement which details the procedural issues for the arbitration, which may be agreed in writing or be in the Arbitration Agreement;
- your nominee’s name and full contact details if your Arbitration Agreement says that a party must nominate the arbitrators;
- receipt confirmation that you have made payment for the Court registration fee or that you will pay this; and
- confirmation that you have or will comply with Article 4 of the Arbitration Rules concerning delivery of documents to all parties to the arbitration or, if unable to do so, provide information showing how else you will or have notified them.
Information to Note About Requesting Arbitration
When you request arbitration suing the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) rules, Article 1 clarifies the following points:
- your arbitration starts once the registrar receives your request and any documentation with it alongside the registration fee for arbitration;
- it can be possible to make changes to your request before the appointment of the arbitral tribunal, and the details concerning this are in Article 1 (1.5);
- ‘Claimant’ can refer to you or you and other parties where other parties are claiming with you; and
- it is possible to make a complete request for more than one arbitration, a composite request for arbitration.
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Key Takeaways
If you face a commercial dispute, consider using arbitration to attempt to resolve this. You could use the London Court of Arbitration (LCIA) Rules. These detail a way to carry out the arbitration process. If so, Article 1 explains how to request arbitration. You should electronically submit a written request to the court registrar to do so. This requires you to include specific information. For example, all your contact details as the claimant for the court to send correspondence on the arbitration. It also requires, for instance, that you send a statement about the issue for the claims and the circumstances around this.
If you need help understanding how to request arbitration using the LCIA Rules in the UK, LegalVision’s experienced disputes and litigation solicitors can assist as part of our LegalVision membership. For a low monthly fee, you will have unlimited access to lawyers to answer your questions and draft and review your documents. So call us today on 0808 196 8584 or visit our membership page.
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