A Critical Evaluation of International Commercial Arbitration within the National Legal System

Abstract

Over the years, there has been an increase in trade across borders between countries. With advancement in technology resulting in a new global business paradigm, various trade and governmental bodies such as the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the Economic Community of West Africa (ECOWAS) have intensified efforts to end protectionism, establish liberalized cross borders and put an end to the prevalence of beggar-thy-neighbour economic policies. While these efforts have been hugely successful, trade barriers are being erected in an unlikely place-international commercial arbitration. These trade barriers have been erected because of conflicting national arbitral rules, applicability of substantive and procedural law, forum shopping, unenforceability of arbitration agreements and resulting arbitral awards especially against state parties. The outcome of the legal straits experienced by foreign investors in settling arbitration issues with their local partners led to a series of international interventions aimed at rectifying the problem. Prominent among these are the internalization of the arbitration rules in the arbitration law of all signatory states under the auspices of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) and the establishment of the International Chambers of Commerce (ICC) Rules of Arbitration. This paper seeks to conduct a critical evaluation of international commercial arbitration within the national legal systems of the United Kingdom and Nigeria with the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration (Model Law) as the legal framework.