At the 1-5 April 2019 session at United Nations headquarters in New York, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Working Group III considered its next steps toward proposed reforms for the current investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) system. With 54 government members, another 50 governments and the European Union as observers, and representatives of some 70 international organizations—including ArbitralWomen—in attendance at the New York meetings, Working Group III is one of the most high-profile initiatives in recent debates about ISDS reform. In prior phases, Working Group III focused on identifying concerns about ISDS and reaching consensus on the desirability of pursuing reforms to address them.  Three main categories of concerns are in play:

1. lack of consistency, coherence, predictability and correctness of arbitral decisions;
2. conduct of arbitrators and decision makers; and
3. cost and duration of proceedings.

The current, third phase is focused on developing ISDS reform proposals. After a session on third-party funding to complete the discussion of ISDS concerns from prior meetings, the New York meeting debated options for framing the work plan going forward. Proposals to prioritize potential reforms with the highest level of consensus (supported by the United States), or to split into workstreams focused on incremental and systemic reforms (supported by the EU), were discussed at length. Ultimately, the Working Group agreed to focus simultaneously on multiple potential reform solutions. Structural reform will be one of those solutions, and proposals for the other solutions to be developed are being solicited (due 15 July 2019) for discussion at the next meeting, which is tentatively set for 14-18 October 2019 in Vienna, Austria. Working Group III’s formal report on the session is available at: https://undocs.org/en/A/CN.9/970   Submitted by ArbitralWomen Member Marinn Carlson, co-leader of the Global Arbitration, Trade and Advocacy Practice at Sidley Austin LLP. Marinn attended the April 2019 Working Group III session as an observer on behalf of ArbitralWomen.

Columbia Law School – Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Comprehensive Course on International Arbitration A week-long systematic and comprehensive examination of the law and practice of international arbitration. The course features lecture and interactive segments and is designed for arbitrators, advocates, in-house counsel and others interested in international arbitration. Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Accelerated Route to Fellowship Course A fast-track route towards Fellowship in the Chartered Institute through the International Pathway. This course includes both candidate assessment and an award writing examination. It assesses the candidate’s knowledge of international arbitration. The courses may be taken together or separately. COURSE 1: MAY 13-17, 2019 LOCATION: DEBEVOISE & PLIMPTON 919 Third Avenue, New York NY 10022 COURSE 2: MAY 20-22, 2019 LOCATION: AMERICAN ARBITRATION ASSOCIATION 150 East 42nd Street, New York, NY Further information available here: https://ciarbny.org/wp-content/uploads/2019-Course-Brochure-121218.pdf

The Diversity Lab, an incubator focused on diversity and inclusion issues in the legal industry, launched the newest version of its campaign to boost diversity in legal departments. Eight companies, including PayPal, Symantec Corp., US Bank, MassMutuam, BASF Corp., Compass Minerals, LendingClub and ThredUP have signed on to an in-house version of the Mansfield Rule that was publicly launched on 4 April 2019 in an effort to increase the representation of women and minorities in top legal department roles and for outside counsel representation, aiming to build on the success of a similar program for law firms. The pilot initiative calls for legal departments to consider at least 50 percent women, LGBTQ, racial and ethnic minorities and lawyers with disabilities for significant leadership roles and promotions internally and for their outside counsel ranks. For more information about the latest initiative of the Diversity Lab, click here: https://www.diversitylab.com/pilot-projects/mansfield-rule-legal-department-edition/

The Commonwealth Secretariat is conducting a Study on challenges to accessing international commercial arbitration across all 53 Commonwealth countries, and potential solutions.

The aim of the study is to understand the use of international commercial arbitration as a means of resolving disputes across the Commonwealth, and to identify ways in which member countries may be able to strength its use. Please find more information about the Study here: http://thecommonwealth.org/arbitration-study. 

ArbitralWomen is pleased to encourage lawyers, arbitrators, and academics from the Commonwealth and those who work in Commonwealth countries to participate by completing the relevant survey.

The surveys are available in English, French, and Portuguese: http://thecommonwealth.org/arbitration-study.

The deadline for contributions is 30 April 2019.

Please take advantage of the opportunity to contribute to this important study and share your views. The Study will be authored by a Study Team that includes Prof Petra Butler (University of Victoria) and Funke Adekoya (Aélex). The Study Task Force includes ArbitralWomen member Emilia Onyema and member Dharshini Prasad acts as Executive Secretary to the Study Team.

In light of ArbitralWomen’s expanding marketing activities, we recently added five AW members to our Marketing Committee: Saadia Bhatty (London), Vanessa Alarcon Duvanel (Geneva), Natalia Otlinger (London), Rekha Rangachari (New York) and Umika Sharma. These new members of the Marketing Committee will contribute to the work led by AW Board Marketing Co-Directors Laurence Burger and Alexandra Johnson as well as the significant marketing activities performed by other AW Board Members.

	Saadia Bhatty is counsel in the international dispute resolution team at Gide Loyrette Nouel’s London Office where she advises and represents states and private entities. She is an Avocat à la Cour and an attorney admitted to the New York bar. She is a graduate of Harvard Law School, the Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University in Paris, and the Ecole Normale Supérieure. She is President of Harvard Women in Defense, Diplomacy and Development.
	Vanessa Alarcon Duvanel is an associate in the international arbitration group at White & Case S.A. Based in Geneva, she represents parties in commercial arbitration proceedings and acts as an arbitrator. She speaks four languages and is admitted to the Bars of Geneva and New York. She is the Secretary of the European Advisory Board of the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution (CPR).
	Natalia Otlinger is a PR and Engagement Executive at the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, London, where she was responsible for interviewing the subjects of the #CIArbWomeninADR campaign. She holds an MA from the University of Law, London and a master’s from the University of Silesia, Poland. Fluent in Polish and English, she coaches the University of Silesia’s Vis Moot team and previously worked as assistant to a construction arbitrator and adjudicator
	Rekha Rangachari is Executive Director of the New York International Arbitration Center. Her leadership roles include serving as Co-Chair of the NYSBA DRS’ International Disputes Resolution Committee and as a Board Member of the New York Coalition of Women’s Initiatives. She serves as an adjunct professor at St. John’s School of Law and Seton Hall Law School teaching commercial arbitration. She is admitted to the New York Bar and is trilingual in English, Tamil and Spanish.
	Umika Sharma is an Indian-qualified lawyer and is presently working as a legal trainee at the Asian International Arbitration Centre, Kuala Lumpur. She holds a BBA LLB from India and an LLM in Comparative and International Dispute Resolution from the Queen Mary University of London. Fluent in English and Hindi, during her studies, Umika completed internships with the Supreme Court of India and the High Court of Delhi.

Take Charge Negotiations™ is a consultancy that was founded by Erin Gleason to support women in negotiations through one-on-one consulting services and group training programs. Erin created this company after hearing too many stories from girlfriends, female clients and co-workers about how they are nervous about asking for things they’re clearly entitled to in business negotiations. This new and innovative firm will provide bespoke trainings that emphasize the importance of strategic planning, risk management techniques, and skills development to help women thrive in negotiations. By familiarizing oneself with key techniques for better understanding the dynamics of a negotiation, and getting clear on priorities, you empower yourself and increase the likelihood of better outcomes. More details about the original programming that Erin has created may be found on www.takechargenegotite.com. Erin is an accomplished arbitrator and mediator and a member of ArbitralWomen. She has worked in the dispute resolution field for nearly 20 years and trained thousands of people on negotiation skills and techniques. She speaks regularly at conferences and community organizations about negotiation and the unique challenges that women face in these conversations. For more information on Take Charge Negotiations, please email Erin at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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