UNCITRAL UNITED NATIONS COMMISSION ON INTERNATIONAL TRADE LAW UNCITRAL Secretariat Guide on the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (New York, 1958) UNITED NATIONS Further information may be obtained from: UNCITRAL secretariat, Vienna International Centre, P.O. Box 500, 1400 Vienna, Austria Telephone: (+43-1) 26060-4060 Telefax: (+43-1) 26060-5813 Internet: www.uncitral.org E-mail: [email protected] UNITED NATIONS COMMISSION ON INTERNATIONAL TRADE LAW UNCITRAL Secretariat Guide on the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (New York, 1958) 2016 Edition UNITED NATIONS New York, 2016 Note Symbols of United Nations documents are composed of capital letters com- bined with figures. Mention of such a symbol indicates a reference to a United Nations document. UNITED NATIONS PUBLICATION Sales No.: E.16.V.7 ISBN: 978-92-1-133851-5 e-ISBN: 978-92-1-058318-3 © United Nations, September 2016. All rights reserved, worldwide. The Guide is a product of the work of the Secretariat based on expert input, and was not substantively discussed by the United Nations Commission on Interna- tional Trade Law (UNCITRAL). Accordingly, the Guide does not purport to reflect the views or opinions of UNCITRAL member States and does not consti- tute an official interpretation of the New York Convention. The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Publishing production: English, Publishing and Library Section, United Nations Office at Vienna. Contents Page Preface ............................................................. ix Introduction ............................................................ 1 Article I ............................................................. 5 Article I (1) ............................................................. 9 A. Meaning of “recognition and enforcement” .................... 9 B. Meaning of “arbitral awards” .................................. 11 C. Arbitral awards falling within the scope of the Convention ...... 18 D. Meaning of “arising out of differences” ........................ 27 Article I (2) ............................................................. 28 Article I (3) ............................................................. 29 A. Reciprocity reservation ...................................... 29 B. Commercial reservation. 33 Article II ............................................................. 37 Article II (1) ............................................................ 42 A. The obligation to recognize an agreement in writing ............ 42 B. Meaning of “agreement”. 43 C. Scope of the “agreement in writing” ........................... 48 Article II (2) ............................................................ 51 A. “Arbitral clause in a contract” versus “arbitration agreement” .... 52 B. The signature requirement ................................... 53 C. An arbitral clause or an arbitration agreement included in an exchange of documents ................................. 54 iii Article II (3) ............................................................ 57 A. General principles ........................................... 57 B. Enforcement of arbitration agreements under article II (3) ...... 62 Article III ............................................................. 75 A. General principles ........................................... 78 B. Rules of procedure of the territory where the award is relied upon ...................................... 82 C. There should not be imposed substantially more onerous conditions or higher fees or charges than are imposed on the recognition or enforcement of domestic arbitral awards .. 90 Article IV ............................................................. 95 A. Prima facie right to recognition and enforcement ............... 99 B. An exhaustive set of requirements ............................. 99 C. Whether applicants can supply some, but not all, article IV documents .................................................. 101 D. “[A]t the time of the application” ............................. 103 Article IV (1)(a) ......................................................... 105 A. The requirement that the applicant provide the “award” ......... 105 B. Authentication and certification .............................. 108 Article IV (1)(b) ......................................................... 113 A. The requirement that the applicant provide the arbitration agreement “referred to in article II” ........................... 114 B. No requirement to prove the validity of the arbitration agreement .................................... 115 C. No requirement to authenticate the arbitration agreement .................................... 116 Article IV (2) ............................................................ 117 A. Governing law .............................................. 117 B. Certification “by an official or sworn translator or by a diplomatic or consular agent” ............................ 118 C. The object of translation ..................................... 119 iv Article V ............................................................. 121 A. Court discretion under article V .............................. 125 B. Exhaustive character of grounds under article V ................ 126 C. Burden of proof under article V .............................. 128 Article V (1)(a) ......................................................... 131 Incapacity of the parties .................................................. 134 A. Meaning of “the parties to the agreement referred to in article II” ................................................. 134 B. Concept of incapacity. 135 C. Meaning of the “law applicable to them” ....................... 138 D. Relevant time for incapacity. 140 Invalidity of the arbitration agreement ..................................... 141 A. The choice of law rule under article V (1)(a) ................... 141 B. Meaning of “invalidity” ...................................... 144 C. Formal validity of an arbitration agreement .................... 145 Procedural issues arising in connection with article V (1)(a) ................ 146 A. Burden of proof ............................................. 146 B. Relevance of the findings of arbitral tribunals or courts ......... 148 C. Preclusion .................................................. 150 Article V (1)(b) ......................................................... 153 A. The requirement that the parties be given “proper notice” ....... 157 B. Evidence that a party was “unable to present his case” ........... 163 C. Procedural hurdles to showing a breach of article V (1)(b) ...... 168 Article V (1)(c) .......................................................... 171 A. General principles ........................................... 174 B. Partial recognition of an award. 181 C. Relationship with other articles in the Convention ............. 182 D. Procedural aspects .......................................... 184 v Article V (1)(d) ......................................................... 187 General principles ....................................................... 191 A. Prevalence of party autonomy ................................ 191 B. Subsidiary role of the law of the country where the arbitration took place. 193 Application ............................................................. 195 A. The requirement that the composition of the arbitral tribunal accord with the governing rules ............................... 195 B. The requirement that the arbitral procedure accord with the governing rules. 198 C. Procedural issues in raising a challenge based on article V (1)(d) ..............................................202 Article V (1)(e) .......................................................... 205 A. The “binding” nature of an award ............................. 209 B. What is a “competent authority” of the country “in which, or under the law of which”, the award was made? .................. 217 C. Award set aside or suspended ................................. 220 Article V (2)(a) ......................................................... 225 A. Concept .................................................... 228 B. Application ................................................. 231 Article V (2)(b) ......................................................... 237 A. Concept .................................................... 240 B. Application ................................................. 247 C. Procedural issues in raising the defence of article V (2)(b) ...... 256 Article VI ............................................................. 263 A. General principles ........................................... 266 B. The decision to grant or deny adjournment .................... 271 C. The decision to order suitable security ......................... 279 Article VII ............................................................. 287 vi Article VII (1) .......................................................... 289 A. General principles ........................................... 290 B. Interaction of the Convention with other treaties ............... 293 C. Interaction of the Convention with domestic law ............... 298 Article VII (2)