There are many maritime centres around the world and many successful maritime arbitration centres. Surveys and figures show that London is the world leader. In 2023, arbitrators were appointed 3200 times in 1850 arbitrations. There were 450 awards, 70 of which were after an oral hearing. These figures are significantly higher than any other arbitration centre and have remained consistant over the years. Fortunately, Brexit has not had the negative impact that was once feared.
Arbitration is almost always pre-agreed in a contract. In the maritime field, these contracts are commonly contracts such as charterparties, bills of lading, MOA, shipbuilding contracts, shipmanagement or management agreements. The marine world is closely linked to offshore projects; we also see arbitration in construction and supplytime. Marine insurance is another area.
Why is London so successful? There are several factors.
The most significant is the maritime cluster. There is a huge amount of experienced here in many fields which support arbitration, ranging from the legal, insurance, broking, finance, commodities and seagoing such as marine engineers and deck officers. This means that there is a large pool of arbitrators to choose from. There are years of marine experience outside of arbitration, plus the support services such as lawyers and expert witnesses. We should also not underplay the role of the courts, who act in a supportive role, not least in periodically reviewing appeals in order to ensure consistency and development to the law where appropriate. Our judges themselves have often worked as specialist maritime advocates for 25 years or more before becoming judges. They know the industry and the players. The precedent established by London and on appeal in the courts is commonly referenced in other jurisdictions.
George Eddings, Full time maritime arbitrator and Aspiring Full Member of the LMAA – London, UK
E: george.eddings@protonmail.com
https://gmteddings.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/george-eddings-71037917/
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