Recognition And Enforcement Of International Commercial Online Arbitral Awards Under The New York Convention

Online arbitration is a significant method for resolving international business disputes and is expected to become more popular as technology advances and society changes.It has the benefits of ease,cheap cost,and great efficiency.The New York Convention offers a framework for the acceptance and execution of international commercial online arbitration decisions,but there are several obstacles in the way of its application in this case.First of all,there is no basis for applying the New York Convention to international commercial online arbitration awards because of the virtual nature of the place of arbitration on the Internet and the absence of rules for determining the online place of arbitration.As a result,it is impossible to determine the nationality of an international commercial online arbitration award.Secondly,the effectiveness of electronic signatures is not consistent with the form of awards required by the New York Convention due to the second issue: cybersecurity in online arbitration is threatened and the authenticity and validity of electronic signatures in online international commercial arbitration awards are difficult to ensure.With the creation of a globally uniform electronic signature certification authority,the electronic signature may be verified by a trustworthy electronic signature authority in this regard,ensuring that it complies with the Convention’s formal specifications.Once more,in practice,the parties assert that online arbitration violates the New York Convention’s requirements for procedural due process,and they use the Convention’s provisions regarding proper notice and the arbitral tribunal’s right to equal treatment as a defense to deny recognition and enforcement of international commercial online arbitration awards.If this defense is successful,the international commercial online arbitration awards may not be successfully recognized.To lessen the risks associated with applying the New York Convention to the recognition and enforcement of international commercial online arbitral awards,the parties may beforehand agree on the format of online arbitration,plan and organize online court proceedings,and use a secure and reliable technological platform.Last but not least,China’s arbitration legislation and institutional norms regarding online arbitration fall short of the demands of online arbitration today.The arbitration laws and norms of arbitration institutions should be clarified about the legitimacy of online arbitration forms,and the clauses relating to the location of the arbitration,electronic signatures,and remote court hearings should be improved.For international commercial online arbitral awards to be efficiently recognized and enforced under the New York Convention,courts assessing the recognition and enforcement of such decisions should exercise restraint and pay attention to data privacy.