Schedule
14 September
19:30 - 21:00 Welcome Reception (Swissotel)
15 September
8:30 - 9:00 Registration
Coffee and tea upon arrival
9:00 - 10:30
Discovery in International Arbitration
Discussion leaders: Stephen Bond & Michael Pryles
- The arbitrator's role in facilitating necessary discovery and resolving discovery
disputes.
- How do arbitrators deal with discovery requests?
- What cross-cultural "norms" are emerging?
- Are arbitrators seeing broader discovery requests, and what does the future hold?
- How may discovery requests and objections to discovery be framed to persuade
arbitrators?
- Dealing with electronic documentation and discovery of computer records.
- Dealing with claims to privilege and confidentiality.
- To what extent do arbitrators draw adverse inferences from a party's reluctance to
provide discovery.
- Should materials produced in discovery be made available to the arbitrators as well
as to the parties?
- Should the parties be the ones to determine the documents they want, rather than the
arbitrators? Which approach is more efficient?
10:30 - 11:00 Coffee / Tea Break
11:00 - 12:30
Advocacy before International Arbitration Tribunals
Discussion leaders: C. Mark Baker & Robert Briner
- Is the art of good advocacy the same before arbitral tribunals and state courts?
- What styles of advocacy do arbitrators find persuasive, and what is counterproductive?
- Written and oral advocacy. What should be written and what should be said?
- Do arbitrators care about rules of evidence such as leading witnesses?
- The use of visual aids, computer presentations etc. in hearings.
- How may advocates learn their trade in international arbitration?
- What are the good habits of successful advocates and what are the bad habits
of unsuccessful advocates?
- How do the parties deal with the fact that, when witness statements are presented
in writing in advance, most of the testimony that will be adduced will be during
cross-examination?
- To what extent should arbitrators ask questions of witnesses?
- Hearsay evidence: Whether it should be offered and how arbitrators should respond,
whether it should be objected to and how arbitrators should deal with it.
12:30 - 14:00 Networking Luncheon
14:00 - 15:30
Presentation of Evidence
Discussion leaders: Lawrence W. Newman & Professor Filip De Ly
- Dealing with advocates from different legal cultures, with different expectations as to
the role of cross-examination.
- Should cross-examination be confined to the scope of the witness' statement?
- Rabbits out of the hat. Should counsel be permitted to present documents for the first
time in cross-examination?
- The role of the tribunal in controlling cross-examination.
- Preparing witnesses for cross-examination. Cultural issues. Parties versus other
witnesses.
- Use of leading questions - Cultural objections.
- Style: How hostile? How loud? How insistent? How long?
- Should points made in cross-examination be underscored at the time or should they
be saved for summation or post-hearing briefs?
15:30 - 16:00 Coffee / Tea Break
16:00 - 17:30
Management of Arbitral Proceedings
Discussion leaders: Sally Harpole & James H. Carter
- Principles for the successful conduct of an arbitration.
- The role of preparatory conferences and how to make them effective.
- Controlling the exchange of pleadings and the submission of documentary and
witness evidence.
- Whether to have any hearing, or more than one hearing, and if so where and
for how long.
- Dealing with common law and civil law expectations as to the purpose of hearings.
- The planning that the tribunal and parties must undertake for a successful hearing.
- Controlling time at a hearing.
- The role of opening and closing arguments, and post-hearing briefs.
- Dealing with witness evidence and witness conferencing.
- Organizing questions by the arbitrators: When? How many?
- Expert Testimony: Separate hearings, confrontations between experts?
