11 June 2021 ArbitrationLinks

New Foreign Arbitral Institutions enter the Russian arbitration market

As reported in earlier blog posts, in 2019, two foreign leading arbitral institutions, the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (“HKIAC”) and the Vienna International Arbitral Centre (“VIAC”), obtained the status of “permanent arbitral institutions” (“PAIs”) in compliance with the amendments introduced to the Russian Law on Arbitration which came into force back in September 2016.

PAI status allowed HKIAC and VIAC to consider international commercial disputes, including some types of corporate disputes (disputes related to incorporation of a Russian legal entity, its management or participation in its share capital). 

New Foreign PAIs in Russia

In May 2021, two more foreign arbitral institutions obtained the PAI status: the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (“ICC”) and the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (“SIAC”).

As we understand, ICC and SIAC are not expected to open branch offices in Russia in the near future. Not doing so means that ICC and SIAC will not be able to administer local Russian disputes. Moreover, we understand that ICC and SIAC have not registered their special corporate rules, so they will not be authorised to administer certain types of corporate disputes.

Therefore, generally ICC and SIAC are expected to have the same powers as HKIAC and VIAC.

The Updated List of PAIs

Based on the above, the current list of PAIs is as follows:

The principal Russian PAIs, meeting the requirements of the Russian law and allowed to consider both Category 1 disputes (including SPA disputes) and Category 2 disputes (including SHA disputes) disputes:

  • ICAC – The International Commercial Arbitration Court at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation;
  • RSPP – Arbitration Centre at the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs;
  • RIMA – Russian Arbitration Centre at the Institute of Modern Arbitration.

Foreign PAIs, meeting the requirements of the Russian laws and expected to be able to administer Category 1 disputes (including SPA disputes):

  • HKIAC;
  • VIAC;
  • SIAC;
  • ICC.