US 678

28 - 08 - 2009

US 678

Yearbook Yearbook Commercial Arbitration, A.J. van den Berg (ed.), Vol. XXXIV (2009)
Jurisdiction United States
Original full text Full text decision US 678
Summary

US 678. United States District Court, District of Maryland, 28 August 2009

Related topics
110

The court discusses the definition of “arbitral award”, and the application of the Convention to the various types of award, including awards on specific performance, awards enjoining a party from certain conduct, declaratory awards, etc. Also, whether preliminary, partial, interim, interlocutory awards, and awards by consent can be enforced under the Convention.

Arbitral award: types
303

The court discusses the conditions under which a party may be estopped from raising a ground for refusal of enforcement under the Convention or has waived the right to raise it.

Estoppel/waiver
402

The court discusses how to determine whether the document supplied is an award capable of being recognized and enforced, including whether the award is duly authenticated, and whether a copy is duly certified; whether a prior interim and/or partial award should be supplied together with the final award.

Original or copy arbitral award
501

The court discusses questions relating to the general approach taken by the Convention to the grounds for refusal of recognition and enforcement, including its pro-enforcement bias, as well as the system of the Convention, under which recognition and enforcement may only be denied on seven listed grounds and the petitioner has only the obligations set out in Art. IV.

Grounds are exhaustive
502

The court discusses the principle that the merits of the award may not be reviewed and that the court may only carry out a limited review of the award to ascertain grounds for refusal.

No re-examination of the merits of the arbitral award
503

The court discusses the burden of proof of the grounds for refusing enforcement under the Convention.

Burden of proof on respondent
512 Ground c: Excess by arbitrator of his authority - Excess of authority
513 Ground d: Irregularity in the composition of the arbitral tribunal or arbitral procedure
523

Public policy: The court discusses alleged violations of a fundamental rule of due process in the arbitration on the recognition and enforcement of an arbitral award, including the failure to communicate the names of the arbitrators, the failure to send copies of reports or letters filed in the arbitration, etc.

Irregularities in the arbitral procedure (see also Art. V(1)(b))
524

Public policy: The court discusses the effect of other alleged violations of public policy on the recognition and enforcement of an arbitral award, such as contradictory reasons, manifest disregard of the law (US), etc.

Other cases
US 678