The Effect of the 1958 New York Convention on Foreign Arbitral Awards in the Arab Gulf States

In the second half of the twentieth century, alongside the evolution of the global economy, modern technology, rapid transportation and multinational enterprises, there was an increased demand for a dispute resolution mechanism that met the needs of traders, international trade and economic policy-makers. Arbitration as an alternative dispute resolution has significantly gained in popularity in the Arab Gulf States over the past two decades or so. This is no doubt reason enough to take a closer look at the main theme that defines arbitration in this region. National courts of the Arab Gulf states are invariably seen as not very arbitration friendly, some possibly even hostile to arbitration. Public order, alongside the Islamic legal traditions, is seen as unruly horse that could possibly undermine the development of international commercial arbitration in this region. The contribution in this book will go some way toward dissipating the concerns that are routinely raised about the procedural and practical soundness of arbitration in the Arab Gulf states. In addition, the book serves to place arbitration in the Arab Gulf states in its present legal systems, national laws and courts practices.