Trends in International Construction Arbitration

As more corporations work internationally, disputes on construction projects have become more common.

Learn about the common trends and developing trends of construction arbitration, the preferred method to resolve these disputes. International arbitration is a transnational dispute typically involving disputes between parties from different nations often performing work in yet another nation. A UK contractor constructing a ore processing facility in a sub-Saharan African nation on behalf of a Canadian minerals company, files a claim for UK?1.45 million and seeks arbitration when the project owner refuses to settle is a an example of an international arbitration. As the world's economy has become more globalized, more corporations are working internationally. Over the past two to three decades disputes on construction projects have become larger, more complicated and more common. Research indicates that arbitration is the preferred dispute resolution mechanism for international corporations rather than transnational litigation. As the number of arbitration case filings has increased so has the number of arbitral institutions (which now number at least 28) and the seats of arbitration. Perhaps in reaction to growing criticism of the process, there has been and continues to be other changes concerning international arbitration.