Denis Meleshkin: ‘The role of international arbitration courts is growing’

An international conference of arbitration institutions organised by the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry was held in Minsk. The event gathered over 160 business entities and representatives of international arbitration courts from Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and other CIS countries.

Opening the conference, Deputy Chairman of the BelCCI Denis Meleshkin noted, first of all, the increasing role of international arbitration courts. This is evidenced by the growing number of cases heard by such courts in the world every year. This is confirmed by the speakers – foreign guests of the conference.

– The more intensively foreign economic relations develop, the higher the risk of disputes. It is arbitration that becomes the institution that provides businesses with effective mechanisms for their resolution and enforcement of decisions in the country and abroad, – Denis Meleshkin emphasised. - The speakers of the event are experienced arbitrators recommended by more than 30 arbitration institutions in Europe, Asia and the CIS, including the institutions of Britain, France, Sweden, China and the UAE. Their unique practical experience in international arbitration and commercial disputes will be a valuable source of knowledge for Belarusian business.

Continuing the conference, Vitaly Vabishchevich, Head of the Department of Legal Support and Digital Technologies of the BelCCI, drew attention to the fact that the role of arbitration courts, which hear foreign economic disputes, is very important, because it is not always possible for a Belarusian enterprise to unambiguously insist that these disputes be heard in Belarus.

– Belarusian business entities often consider disputes in the territory of other countries – Russia, Kazakhstan, China. Therefore, the task of the conference is to advise and recommend lawyers through arbitration practice how to behave properly when concluding and executing foreign trade deals and considering disputes in arbitration courts, - said the representative of the BelCCI.

The event included two sections. In the first one the speakers dwelt in detail on the peculiarities of dispute settlement in arbitration courts, recognition and enforcement of decisions, discussed the impact of restrictive measures on the settlement of foreign economic disputes.

The second section had a more practical orientation. The participants shared their experience in arbitration courts and the practice of challenging arbitration agreements, analysed the main mistakes in formulating arbitration clauses.

The culmination of the conference was a mock trial of a real court case based, among other things, on the consequences of sanctions pressure on the impossibility to fulfil a contract.