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Improving International Arbitration: The Need for Speed and Trust, Liber Amicorum Michel Gaudet is a compilation of the contributions of world-renowned experts from five continents. This exceptional work has been made possible thanks to a seminar on the Need for Speed held at the ICC in May 1998 in honour of Michel Gaudet, Honorary Chairman of the ICC International Court of Arbitration and Honorary Council Member of the ICC Institute of World Business Law.

In this book, for the first time, the need for speed of international trade actors in international arbitration – whether governments or private sector – is examined systematically worldwide. The roles, responsibilities and aspirations of each participant in an arbitration – parties, counsel, arbitrators, and state courts – are scrutinized at each stage, from the drafting of the arbitration agreement through the arbitration procedure, and on to the enforcement of the arbitral award.

The contribution of mediation and other forms of Alternative Dispute Resolution as well as electronic means (whether online or not) form key segments of the analysis. Moving beyond the debates about rapidity versus due process, the authors grapple with the consequences of the increasing complexity of international commercial relations and the acceleration to a fast-track pace.

Through the stirring homages to this remarkable internationalist and statesman, the role of trust in achieving speed is highlighted as we heed Michel Gaudet’s call to “prepare tomorrow”.

As part of making this book special we have a friends section at the end entitled with the words of the crystal sculpture given to Chairman Gaudet at lunch: “first in the world of arbitration; first in the hearts of his friends”.