In Señor Tza Yap Shum v The Republic of Peru (ICSID Case No. ARB/07/6), an ICSID ad hoc committee rejected Peru's request for annulment of a July 2011 award and partial annulment of the earlier 2009 decision on jurisdiction and competence. Among other things, Peru criticised the tribunal's interpretation of the dispute settlement clause in the Peru-China bilateral investment treaty. We will report further shortly. (For background information on the decision on jurisdiction and competence, see Legal updates, ICSID tribunal adopts broad interpretation of Peru-China BIT and MFN argument rejected, but scope of arbitration provision interpreted broadly.)

In Attia v. Audionamix Inc., No. 14 CIV. 706 RMB, (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 21, 2015), the US District Court for the Southern District of New York vacated an ICDR award that dismissed an executive's claims against his former employer and granted the employer's counterclaims, on default, as a sanction for the executive's alleged wiping of emails and other files from his mobile devices. The arbitrator had granted the employer's motion to strike the executive's proof offered to refute the charge of spoliation of evidence. The court found that the arbitrator committed misconduct in refusing to hear evidence pertinent and material to the controversy and therefore vacated the award and remanded the case to the ICDR for rehearing and further proceedings.

In 2014 and 2015, the IBA subcommittee on recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards conducted a comparative study on 'public policy' as a defence to the recognition and enforcement of awards under the New York Convention. The general report summarising the findings of the country reports, and the country reports themselves will be available shortly.

The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Working Group II has published its latest report on discussions at its sixty-third session in Vienna on 7-11 September 2015. This session the Working Group concentrated on the enforceability of settlement agreements.