CASELOAD 3rd QUARTER 2019
The total number of cases filed before CRCICA until 30 September 2019 reached 1354 cases. In the third quarter of 2019, 15 new cases were filed, compared to 13 new cases filed in the third quarter of 2018.
The Centre’s caseload in the third quarter of 2019 involved disputes related to: Construction, Oil & Gas, Public-Private Partnership, Media & Entertainment, International Sale of Goods, Tourism and Hospitality, Pharmaceuticals, Telecommunications, Retail and Real Estate Development.
Two cases related to disputes in the Construction sector. The first case related to a dispute arising from a contract for the construction of ten buildings in Port Said between two Egyptian parties. The second case related to a settlement agreement regarding rights and obligations resulting from a prior subcontract for civil works in power plant in Libya between an Egyptian company and an Emirati party
One case involved a dispute arising out of two Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Agreements between an Egyptian private party and an Egyptian public law entity.
Two cases related to the Oil & Gas sector. The first case involved a contract for the supply of petroleum products for a petrol station located at the Cairo-Alexandria highway between an Egyptian Party and the Egyptian subsidiary of an international oil company. The second case related to a contract for the supply of pipes for a gas pipeline between an Indian party and an Egyptian public company.
Two cases related to dispute in the Tourism and Hospitality Sector. The first case involved a contract for the provision of desalinated water to a resort located in Sharm El Sheikh between two Egyptian companies. The second cases involved a memorandum of understanding between an Egyptian company and an Italian party for a prospective partnership to manage a hotel located on the Red Sea coast.
Two cases related to the Retail Sector. The first case involved a settlement agreement between an Egyptian real estate development company and the Occupants’ Union of mall located in Sheikh Zayed, Giza. The second case related to a dispute arising from a lease agreement for a commercial space at a mall complex located in Cairo between an Egyptian company and a Saudi controlled Egyptian Company.
One case related to the Media & Entertainment sector and involved a Contract for the hosting of a TV satellite channel between a Saudi Satellite service provider and a Tunisian TV channel.
One case related to International Sales of Goods sector. It involved a settlement agreement related to a contract for the sale of grains between a British company and an Egyptian company. The original sale of grain contract included a GAFTA arbitration clause, while the settlement agreement referred disputes arising out of it to arbitration under the CRCICA Rules.
One case related to the pharmaceutical sector and involved a contract for the manufacturing of pharmaceutical products between two Egyptian companies.
One case related to the automobile sector. It involved a settlement agreement related to a distribution contract in the automobile sector between multiple Egyptian companies.
One case related to the telecommunication sector and involved a contract for the provision of VSAT communication services between two Egyptian companies.
One case related to the real estate development sector and involved a contract for real estate development of a compound located in a Sudanese city between an Egyptian company and a Sudanese state entity.
Among the 37 arbitrators appointed this quarter, there are 9 non-Egyptian arbitrators, representing about 20% of appointments. Non-Egyptian arbitrators hailed from Bahrain, Canada, France, the UK and USA. From among the said 36 arbitrators, 5 were appointed by the CRCICA whilst the others were appointed by the parties or the co-arbitrators as the case may be.
The third quarter also witnessed the appointment of 2 female arbitrators as well as 5 arbitrators under 40, as part of CRCICA’s endeavor vis-à-vis the Pledge for Equal Representation in arbitration. From among the 2 female arbitrators, one was appointed by the CRCICA.
Arbitration proceedings in the third quarter involved parties from India, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tunisia, the UAE and the UK. These statistics are conservative, since non-Egyptian parties mentioned herein do not include Egyptian companies owned or ultimately controlled by foreign shareholders.
Amongst the 15 cases filed in this quarter, four cases were conducted in English (27%) while 11 cases were conducted in Arabic (73%).
During the third quarter of 2019, 29 hearings took place at CRCICA’s premises. 24 of the hearings related to cases brought under CRCICA rules and 4 hearings related to ad hoc cases administered by CRCICA.
CRCICA also hosted witnesses to testify remotely to the ICC in Paris, using live feed of proceedings (i.e. video conferencing to visualize the hearing room), real time viewer (i.e. live testimony immediately appears on your computer screen as the court reporter writes real-time), and using Opus 2 Magnum electronic bundle solution, in two separate cases. Indeed, CRCICA Hearing Centre offers a cost-effective venue for hearings and witnesses in connection with the countries of the region which still suffer from turmoil and whose nationals may face challenges to obtain the Schengen or the UK visa.
