More than 100 unique arbitration proceedings were conducted in Western Australia during the 2017-18 financial year, the first-ever survey of the sector has found.
More than 100 unique arbitration proceedings were conducted in Western Australia during the 2017-18 financial year, the first-ever survey of the sector has found.
The survey confirmed there was a substantial arbitration community in WA with significant expertise and experience.
The 105 proceedings captured by the survey were split between purely domestic matters (53) and those with international links (52).
The amounts in issue were more than $14 billion in claims and an additional $8.5 billion in counterclaims.
The larger amounts were skewed towards the international arbitrations.
The disputes were predominately in the construction/engineering sector, along with mining and energy (oil and gas).
This reflects the many disputes that have arisen on completion of major resources construction projects over the past decade.
The survey showed arbitration is a significant money spinner.
Law firms in WA derived at least $85 million in fees for arbitration-related services during the year surveyed.
In addition to those fees, other costs included $9 million in tribunal costs and $13 million in witness fees (including fees to expert witnesses).
The survey had 73 unique respondents out of 120 invitations, including 22 from law firms, 14 from in-house counsel and the balance from arbitrators and barristers.
It was the brainchild of WA practitioners Brian Millar and Scott Ellis, and was completed with support from Francis Burt Chambers, FTI Consulting and ICC Australia.
Mr Ellis said one of the attractions of arbitration was confidentiality but this meant most arbitration flew under the radar.
He said the report showed how much WA arbitration work and expertise there was.
Mr Millar said the purpose of the survey was to promote arbitration generally and to showcase the expertise of WA people and entities.
“Clients in the market for dispute resolution services, both within Australia and internationally, now have the benefit of this objective data to assist in their choice of dispute resolution methods and practitioners,” Mr Millar said.
The report found opportunities for WA-based practitioners to increase their involvement in the international market and to increase the use of arbitration in domestic disputes.
Perth’s amenity, arbitration-friendly courts, convenient time zone, comparatively low cost of its lawyers and the experience of its practitioners were seen as competitive advantages.
However, the report also indicated that parties remained concerned by the excessive ‘judicialisation’ of the arbitration process and were seeking alternative, pragmatic methods to reduce time and costs.
“Interrogation of the survey data also reveals significant amounts of dispute resolution work arising from WA projects being done overseas and by people with no connection to Western Australia,” the report found.
“There is opportunity for that work to also be done in WA and to involve WA people and entities.”
It also noted that, while domestic arbitration makes use of local expertise, there is a tendency for international disputes to involve overseas or interstate arbitrators, lawyers, and counsel.
The survey comes nearly five years after the establishment of the Perth Centre for Energy & Resources Arbitration, which is in the process of merging with the Sydney-based Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration.
PCERA director Kanaga Dharmananda said this would ensure a single voice for arbitration.
