The Court of Appeal decision arises in the context of the recent run of English court decisions granting anti-suit relief involving Russian parties.
Amendments to the Russian Arbitrazh Procedure Code in 2020 (Lugovoi law) have provided Russian arbitrazh courts with exclusive jurisdiction over disputes involving sanctioned persons or arising from sanctions.
A common method in English Courts has been under s.37 Senior Courts Act but in this groundbreaking case used s.42 of the Arbitration Act 1996.
In this notable case, the Court of Appeal confirmed that as a matter of law the court has power under section 42 of the Arbitration Act 1996 to make an order enforcing a peremptory order of an arbitration tribunal granting anti-suit relief.
Dismissing the appeal, the court found that section 41(5) of the Arbitration Act 1996 is not qualified and that the anti-suit relief sought in the case fell within the scope of something ‘necessary for the proper and expeditious conduct of the arbitration’.
The Court of Appeal held that it is obviously conducive to the proper conduct of the arbitral reference that “a party should not be free simply to thumb its nose at an order made against it by the tribunal” and that that imperative extends to all orders properly made against a party, without exception.
Read the full judgment here.
