The African Development Bank (AFDB) has recently posted on its website the Assessment Report of Arbitration Centres in Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt and Mauritius, which was prepared by Dr Werner Jahnel, Partner, LALIVE as mandated by the AFDB to assess various arbitration centres across the African continent. The Report focuses on the following three centres: La Cour Commune de Justice et d'Arbitrage (CCJA) in Côte d'Ivoire, the Cairo Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration (CRCICA) in Egypt, and the Mauritius International Arbitration Centre (LCIA-MIAC) in Mauritius. The purpose of the Report is to assess the arbitration centres against the requirement and standards for "international commercial arbitration" according to the Bank's Rules and Procedures for the Procurement of Goods and Works and to examine, among other issues, "the neutral venue requirement" in each of these centres.

The research methodology of the report was double-staged based on desk review of documents and site visits of some of the Centres involved. The Final Report consolidates the findings of the two stages and provides a final assessment of each centre.

For the first time since its inception in 1979, CRCICA issued eight Practice Notes determining the discretion and role of the Centre as well as its policies regarding the following decisions under CRCICA's Arbitration Rules in force since 1 March 2011:

1. The Centre's decision not to proceed with arbitral proceedings in accordance with Article 6 of the Rules;
2. The application of Article 10(3) of the Rules regarding multiparty arbitrations and its correlation with Article 9(2);
3. The notification to the parties and the arbitral tribunals of the submissions deposited by the parties, in light of Article 17(4) and (5) and Article 48 of the Rules;

The total number of arbitration cases filed before CRCICA until 30 June 2014 reached 977 cases. In the second quarter of 2014, 18 new arbitration cases were filed compared to 16 cases filed in the same quarter last year.

CRCICA's caseload in the second quarter of 2014 involved disputes relating mainly to construction, media and entertainment, lease agreements, real estate, supply, telecommunications, information technology and services.

While the construction cases filed in the first quarter of 2014 came in the third position after the lease and hotel management agreements, the second quarter of 2014 witnessed a "comeback" for such cases amounting to four thus far.

The CRCICA Advisory Committee (AC) held its second quarterly meeting in 2014 on 23 June in the presence of the following members: Coun. Mohamed Amin EL MAHDY, Prof. Dr. Fathi WALY, Prof. Dr. Mahmoud Samir EL SHARKAWY, Prof. Dr. Hossam ISSA, Coun. Dr. Borhan AMRALLAH, Prof. Dr. Mohamed BADRAN, Coun. Dr. Adel F. KOURA, Dr. Mohamed Salah ABDEL WAHAB in addition to CRCICA Director.

Among other businesses, the Committee approved the final English and Arabic versions of CRCICA's Practice Notes, which regulate the Centre's decisions under its Rules. The Practice Notes are deemed an important institutional development that fosters transparency in the decision-making process. The next AC quarterly meeting is scheduled to take place in September 2014.

On June 23, 2014, CRCICA hosted the international launching seminar of Henri Capitant's Association entitled "The necessity of reforming Private and Economic Relations Laws: a Franco-Egyptian perspective". The general theme involved a close examination and comparison between the evolution of the French and Egyptian laws regarding different legal topics such as the reform of the French civil law, the non-execution of contracts under Egyptian law, the evolution of economic law, evidence law and the evolution of arbitration law.

The seminar helped connecting the legal French speaking community in Egypt from universities, law firms and the different sectors of business environment and also managed to draw a closer look at the challenges and evolution of both the French and Egyptian laws.

On 9 April 2014, CRCICA hosted the Oral Pleadings of The Shalakany Law Office International Commercial Arbitration Moot (SAM). SAM is an annual competition of teams representing law schools throughout Egypt and is intended to stimulate the study of international commercial law and to promote and develop interest and skills in international commercial arbitration. The nature of the Moot is intended to lead participants to interpret the texts of international commercial law to develop an expertise in advocating a position before an arbitral panel. The Moot is designed as an educational learning program in the form of a competition. It is not intended to be a competition with material benefits.

Shalakany Law Office organizes the SAM on a pro bono basis as part of its efforts to promote and support legal education in Egypt.

The pleadings were divided into four teams of students coming from the Cairo University English Section Law, IDAI Sorbonne (Cairo University French Section Law) and Assuit University.

On June 18, 2014, Dr. Karim Youssef, partner and head of Middle East arbitration at Amereller Legal Consultants (associated with Mena Associates in Cairo) and associate professor of Law at Cairo University School of Law, gave a lecture titled "Key Procedural Issues in International Arbitrations Seated in Cairo: the Case for Pragmatic and Efficient Solutions." The lecture was intended to be interactive and focused on practical aspects of doing document production in Cairo. The lecture instigated useful and informative reactions from the floor about the regulation of document production by the parties, under the Egyptian Evidence Law in Civil and Commercial Matters, and under the IBA Rules on the Taking of Evidence. The interaction with the audience that followed extended to broader aspects of arbitration in Egypt and the day-to-day practical experiences of arbitration practitioners, lawyers generally but also practitioners with non-legal backgrounds, which contributed to enriching the discussion.

Participants represented law firms, schools of law, construction and engineering companies, holding companies, industrial corporations, judicial authorities, general prosecutions, state courts, ministries, investment companies, banks, tourism sector, oil and gas corporations, maritime and social insurance companies, trade firms and international organizations.

In the April Mediation Breakfast Seminar titled "The Stages of Mediation", Dr. Maged Ackad, Founder of Ackad Law Office, CEDR Accredited Mediator and Mediation trainer, analyzed the smooth complementarity among the different phases of mediation. After explaining the different types of the mediation agreement, Dr. Ackad categorized the stages of the process into three basic ones; the preparation stage, the investigation stage and the negotiation stage. All three stages reveal a high level of interaction between the mediator and parties. At the end of the lecture, there was a guiding comparison between post-procedures process in two juxtaposed cases; the success and the failure of mediation. The seminar closed by a lively debate that revealed the increasing interest in mediation. Attendees represented holding companies, general authorities, schools of law, private law firms, Arab Investment companies and construction consultancy firms.

Construction Disputes was the thematic focus of the May Breakfast Seminar. Dr. Ahmed Fathi Waly, Assistant Professor – Department of Construction and Architectural Engineering at the American University in Cairo, delivered a lecture on "Mediation in Construction Disputes: Reality and Perspectives". The speech highlighted the features and importance of mediation in construction disputes. The disputes settlement mechanism in FIDIC Contracts was tackled with particular focus on mediation. Moreover, the presentation handled the role of mediators in construction disputes, as well as the difference between mediation and negotiation. Following discussion of case studies, Dr. Waly suggested two recommendations; the first to raise the awareness of all construction stakeholders, owners, consultants and contractors alike, as to the privileges of mediation and the second to consider adding a mediation provision in construction contracts. The presentation triggered an interesting questions and answers session. Attendees were representatives of private law firms, construction companies, schools of law and public sector general authorities directly involved in the construction industry.

The Mediation Breakfast Seminar of June was delivered by Dr. Eman Mansour, Director of the Investors' Dispute Settlement Centre of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI), under the title "Confidentiality Guarantees in Mediation". At the outset, Dr. Mansour highlighted the privileges of mediation and responded to possible fears and concerns as based on the comparative law and practice of mediation. The Seminar displayed the various guarantees of confidentiality in mediation under different jurisdictions. Legislative guarantees in different national laws as well as regulatory securities in institutional rules and practices were tackled. The lecture also highlighted the legal penalties for the breach of confidentiality in a number of national legislations including the Draft Egyptian Mediation Law. The presentation was followed by constructive discussions and noticeable interaction from the audience who represented investment companies, ministries, schools of law, holding companies, tourism companies and general authorities and law firms.

In his capacity as Vice-President of the International Federation of Commercial Arbitration Institutions (IFCAI), CRCICA Director attended both the IFCAI Council and the 20^th IFCAI General Assembly meetings held in Miami on 6 and 7 April 2014, respectively.

During such meetings, the revision of IFCAI's Constitution was discussed based on a draft amendment submitted by the Nominating Committee composed of Bill Slate, Adrian Winstanley and Jens Bredow as well as the discussions that took place during the last Council meeting held in Paris on 5 December 2013.

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The International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA)'s Congress was held in Miami from April 6 to 9, 2014. The program of the Miami Congress focused on legitimacy issues with special emphasis on the myths, realities and challenges.

On 7 April 2014, a panel involving representatives of nine arbitral institutions including CRCICA addressed the following question: Arbitral Institutions Can Do More to Further Legitimacy. True or False? The panel was chaired by Salim Moollan (London) who was assisted by a rapporteur, Belinda McRae (Paris).

The International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA) held the New York Convention Roadshow from 3 to 5 May, 2014 in Manama, Bahrain. The Roadshow was the first of a series of planned dialogues on the 1958 convention in Bahrain and the Arab World and accompanied the publication of an ICCA guide to its interpretation and application, in Arabic. ICCA has already held similar dialogues in Mauritius, bringing together judges from 13 African countries.

The Roadshow was organised by Mrs. Marike Paulsson, a member of ICCA's judiciary committee, and Prof. Nassib Ziadé, CEO of the BCDR-AAA. Discussions were led by Prof. Nassib Ziadé along with Dr. Hamza Haddad Director of the Law and Arbitration Centre in Amman and Dr. Mohammed Abdel Raouf, CRCICA Director in his capacity as member of ICCA's governing board and judiciary committee. Bahrain's Judge Yousif Al-Akyabi also steered discussions.

On 18 May 2014, the Alexandria Branch of the French Chamber of Commerce in Egypt (CCFE), organized its first conference on Mediation in Alexandria on: «Commercial Mediation, an Effective Tool for Dispute Resolution». The half-day event was hosted by the French Consulate in Alexandria, Egypt and was attended by more than 30 persons from different backgrounds.

The Seminar was intended to discuss new developments in alternative dispute resolution, analyze and share experiences while focusing on the most important practical issues in mediation, based on what's happening right now in the field.

The Institute for the Promotion of Arbitration and Mediation in the Mediterranean (ISPRAMED) has recently released its first Report resulting from the comparative work of practices and rules on arbitration among the members of the Network of the Mediterranean Arbitration Centres, namely:

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On 23 March 2014, a governmental Saudi delegation paid a study visit to the Cairo Regional Centre for International Commercial Arbitration. The visit was a part of a legal training on international law conducted by Volterra Fietta, an international law firm. The delegation was composed of 8 lawyers from the Royal Court, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Petroleum accompanied by trainers from Volterra Fietta.

As a part of an extensive training program, the visit was meant to provide the trainees with a practical insight into the functioning of international organizations and arbitral institutions and provide them with an opportunity to engage with individuals who work with international law on a daily basis.

On 28 April 2014, and in implementation of the cooperation agreement concluded between CRCICA and the GCC Commercial Arbitration Centre in 2009, Mrs. Eman Issa Abdulsalam, Communications and marketing Media Coordinator of the GCC Commercial Arbitration Centre visited CRCICA . The main target of the visit was to exchange knowledge and share experiences regarding the organization of conferences and regional events. Discussions tackled the organizational tools and methodologies of the Cairo Centre as well as the marketing needs and expectations of the Gulf Area. Future mutual cooperation between the two centres were also deliberated and the idea of holding an inter-Arab Arbitration Colloquium were raised enthusiastically.

During the month of April 2014, CRCICA hosted three lectures on international arbitration given by Dr. Mohamed Abdel Raouf to the postgraduate students of the IDAI ("Institut de Droit des Affaires Internationales"), which is a delocalized Cairo branch of the prestigious University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. The lectures are given in French as part of a 20-hours course on international arbitration within the context of the Master's Degree on International and European Business Laws.

CRCICA organized a two-week intensive internship program for two undergraduates; Youssef Rizkana, the School of Law, University of East Anglia (UEA), United Kingdom, and Ziad Loutfi, School of Law (English Section), Cairo University. Interns were given the chance to examine the Rules of the Centre and the Egyptian Arbitration Law no. 27/1994 and to attend three hearings and CRCICA-hosted events. To enrich their understanding of arbitration, they were involved in a comparative research about the complexity of the arbitration agreement and its consequences; the differences between ad hoc and institutional arbitrations; the difference between arbitration and litigation and the salient features of the rules of different arbitration institutions.

CRCICA contributed two chapters in the World Arbitration Reporter - 2^nd Edition, one on Egypt and the other on the works and activities of the Centre.

Extensively revised and updated by leading authorities in the field, the World Arbitration Reporter (WAR) is said to be the only integrated reference work containing detailed commentary and analysis on national legislation from more than 100 countries as well as information on the rules of procedure of more than 100 international and national arbitral institutions and the leading international arbitration treaties and agreements.

WAR - Second Edition is divided into four comprehensive volumes on: National Arbitration Country Reports; National Arbitration Institutions; International Arbitration Institutions and International Arbitration Treaties, Bilateral and Regional Agreements.

CRCICA contributed with a chapter on Egypt in the Juris Publishing first edition of Interim Measures in International Arbitration edited by Mr. Lawrence W. Newman and Dr. Colin Ong. Contributors gathered from 43 different countries all over the world, to inform the reader about the essential elements of the different interim measures which are available as part of the arbitral process, each in his/her respective jurisdiction. According to the published editorial note, this book combines the best elements of a focused legal textbook with the essential practicalities of a practitioners' procedural handbook. It is notable that Egypt and the United Arab Emirates are the only representatives of the Arab world in this important Publication.

CRCICA has recently issued volume 22 of the Journal of Arab Arbitration, which is a semi-annual publication of the Arab Union of International Arbitration (AUIA). Each volume of the Journal includes a number of articles, judicial awards and arbitral precedents. Click here to download the table of contents.

CRCICA has entered into an agreement with Kluwer Law International to publish the fourth English volume of CRCICA Arbitral Awards which is authored by Dr. Mohi-Eldin Ismail Alam-Eldin, the Senior Legal Adviser of the Centre. Volume IV includes seven complex construction cases. Each award is squeezed into around 100 pages originally out of 300/500 pages. The publication is expected to be on market before the end of 2014.

In cooperation with the Cairo Branch of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb), The remaining 2014 modules of the Comparative Commercial Arbitration: Theory and Practice (CCATP) are scheduled as follows:

The Arbitral Proceedings Module tackles, inter alia, the rules applicable to the procedures, evidences and the examination of witnesses, interim measures...etc.

In this module, "the Arbitral Award" will be handled in depth as based on most recent court judgments in different jurisdictions.

Sharm El Sheikh 2014 is the fifth in the only international series of conferences organized biennially since 2005 on the evolving relation between state courts and arbitration in a cross-cultural context.

CRCICA Partners in the Sharm El Sheikh Conferences are the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), the International Federation of Commercial Arbitration Institutions (IFCAI), and the Arab Union for International Arbitration (AUIA).

The program of Sharm El Sheikh V will focus on the role of the judiciary during the four traditional phases of the arbitration process (the arbitration agreement, the arbitral tribunal, the arbitration proceedings and the arbitral award). Confirmed speakers so far come from Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Italy, France, UK, Sweden, Brazil, Venezuela, U.S.A. and Cameron.