As we gear up for 2022’s ADC-ICC Asia-Pacific Commercial Mediation Competition (APCMC), we are thrilled to see APCMC 2021 teams do so well in the recent 17th International Commercial Mediation Competition, online from Paris. Not for the first time has the University of Auckland taken home the title of reigning champion from Paris. Congratulations Auckland! It is another brilliant achievement from a stellar team.  ADC congratulates Paris grand finalist, the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and semi-finalist teams, the University of New South Wales and Pontifical Catholic University of [...]

For over 37 years ADC has been at the forefront of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in Australia. It has helped promote the uptake and best practice of ADR, and Australia’s ADR expertise internationally. ADC has developed into a globally recognised, independent ADR institution with a proven record of corporate social responsibility, exceptional training and education programs, thought leadership and prestigious dispute management services. This is our journey: 1986 When the NSW Government established the Australian Commercial Disputes Centre (ACDC) [...]

Christelle Santos ADC, Dispute Resolution Associate Drafting a dispute resolution clause for your contract needs careful attention. Getting it right is important to ensure that when activated, the dispute resolution process runs smoothly for the benefit of the contracting parties. The clause needs to be drafted so as not to produce any doubt on the dispute resolution process to be used or become unenforceable due to inconsistencies.  As highlighted by Donna Ross in her article “Beware the Champagne Clause: When the Effervescence [...]

Pathways to Commercial Success in Latin America On Tuesday 14 December, the Australia–Latin America Business Forum was hosted by the Australian Disputes Centre as a hybrid event (in Sydney and online). Speakers from Australia and Latin America highlighted the growing trade and investment between Australia and Latin America and shared valuable insights into challenges confronting cross-border trade and tips on how to manage these business risks. His Excellency Mr Eduardo Patricio Peña Haller, Ambassador of Mexico highlighted the importance [...]

Stephano Salani I.  Introduction Negotiations and dispute resolution require quick thinking and strategic reactions to developing situations, dynamic relationships, and power shifting.  The mindset of a negotiator in such a dynamically evolving situation has been frequently defined in a binary manner.  A negotiator may be considered to take either a competitive/distributive approach or be considered to take a collaborative/integrative approach.[1]  Scholars have suggested that the determination of which approach to take should be governed by the relationship of the [...]

by Stephano Salani From left to right: Jeremy Gormly SC, Tom Howe QC, The Hon. Ruth McColl AO, Michael Kingston, Australian Government Solicitor On November 2021, the Australian Dispute Resolution Advisory Council Inc. (ADRAC) published its Final Report: Conciliation: connecting the dots. The report is the culmination of seven years of work. ADRAC’s research on conciliation in Australia was first published in its October 2019 Discussion Paper, Conciliation: a discussion paper, after almost three years of research. In the 2019 [...]

by Kaira Pinheiro Introduction Disputes Boards (‘DBs’) are permanent panels set up to accompany the performance of a contract, and assist in avoiding or overcoming disagreements and disputes throughout the contractual process.[1] DBs establish a process not only to avoid disputes before they arise, but also a further process for the resolution of those disputes after they arise.[2] DBs functions range from identifying disagreements and informally assisting parties to resolve such matters, as well as determining disputes through formal [...]

By Ayushi Thakur* As a carpenter uses all tools in their toolkit to complete a project successfully, a negotiator has a suite of skills and processes available to them for advancing negotiations to a successful conclusion. When COP26 formed in Glasgow to negotiate further climate action we watched the range of tools used. Would the organisers use the Indaba negotiation process, as they had done to reach the 2015 Paris Agreement, or would they try something else? COP26 did [...]

By Stephano Salani* A notable highlight of Arbitration Week was the final panel discussion: Arbitration and Dispute Resolution in the Space Sector. Panellists from Lipman Karas delved into the exciting topic of Australia’s emerging space industry, the unique nature of space sector disputes, and arbitration’s growing role in dispute resolution in this sector. The panel covered an array of issues such as industry developments, the frequency and types of disputes that arise, the range of issues space-related contracts should [...]

By Stephano Salani* Australian Arbitration Week 2021 flew by - beginning on Monday, 18 October with the International Arbitration Conference and finished with Arbitration and Dispute Resolution in the Space Sector on Friday, 22 October after covering numerous cutting-edge issues along the week. Some of the major themes that resonated throughout the week included issues arising from the obviously relevant COVID-19 pandemic as well as developing topics such as arbitration in environmental sectors, energy and renewable sectors, and changes [...]