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Conflict Of Interests: Seeking A Way Forward On Publication Of International Arbitral Awards, Joshua D H Karton

Joshua Karton

There now appears to be general agreement that greater publication of awards would benefit the international commercial arbitration system, yet most awards remain unpublished. This article explains the current state of affairs by reference to the conflict between party and systemic interests. Since international arbitration is a private, consent-based system, party interests in keeping awards confidential are likely to trump systemic interests in publishing them—even if those systemic interests align with the long-term interests of commercial parties generally.

The conflict of interests not only explains why confidentiality of international arbitral awards remains the rule, it also points the way to …