Past Events

On 20 March 2018, CIArb Cairo Branch jointly with CRCICA organized a seminar on “Exploring FIDIC’s New Rainbow: The 2017 suite of contracts under the limelight”. The speaker was Dr. Ahmed Fathi Waly, one of the Friendly Reviewers of the 2017 Red, Yellow and Silver Books. Moderated by the Branch President, Prof. Dr. Mohamed Salah Abdel Wahab,  the Seminar shed light on the main features of the newly launched Suite of FIDIC Contracts.  Attendees were able to get acquainted with the additional definitions, new provisions, modified and enhanced conditions, as well as the improved clarity and certainty characteristics of the new Books. 

More than 100 professionals attended the Seminar, basically representing the following business sectors: engineering and construction, construction consultancy as well as oil and gas. Members of a number of law firms, universities and the Egyptian Lawsuit Authority also attended. Participants  interacted and showed keen interest in the subject.

On 17 March 2018, CRCICA and Shearman & Sterling organized a Seminar on "The Interpretation and Application of the New York Convention: Taking Stock of the Practice".The Seminar focused on the 1958 New York Convention Guide (the “Guide”) which services as a reference tool collating case laws from a wide number of jurisdictions.  For public accessibility, the UNCITRAL set up an interactive online platform in cooperation with Shearman & Sterling and the Columbia Law School in 2012.

Against Prof. Emmanuel Gaillard’s background speech about the New York Convention Guide, other topics of the agenda focused on the application of articles 3 and 5 of the Convention by the Egyptian Courts, the website of theGuide and the contribution of CRCICA, among fifty selected international institutions, to the UNCITRAL Digest on the New York Convention Guide.

The Seminar was concluded by interesting Qs & As where useful interactive discussions were raised. The event witnessed diversity of participants from law firms, Egyptian Lawsuit Authority and State Council, public and private sector companies (construction, petroleum, and electrics companies in particular), as well as academics and students.

On 9 January 2018, CRCICA organized a conference on: The Use of French as the Language of Arbitration "L’usage du français comme langue de l’arbitrage" in collaboration with the French Arbitration Committee (CFA), Francarbi, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Egypt (CCIFE), the Comparative Legislation Society (Société de Legislation Comparée) and the Association for the Promotion of Arbitration in Africa (APAA).

The French Ambassador to Egypt , H. E. M. Stéphane Romatet inaugurated the Conference and praised CRCICA for its efforts to create an institutionally-empowered “strategic axis for the use of French as the Language of Arbitration.”The agenda focused on the use of the French language in law and in arbitration. The use of French in arbitration proceedings was discussed from the point of view of lawyers and arbitrators. The advantages and disadvantages of bilingual arbitral proceedings were also debated and the conference ended with a round table discussion on the geographic approaches of the use of the French language in Arbitration. The conference also included a unique session in which Professor Charles Jarrosson spoke on arbitration in the French literature.

It is worth noting that CRCICA has taken vigorous strides to promote the use of French in arbitration, especially after the issuance of the French version of its Rules in March 2017 which was logistically supported by a growing number of trilingual staff.

Interventions from participants representing 14 different countries, stressed the importance and advantages of the use of the French language in international arbitration as well as its growing popularity, especially in African States. Conferees were from Algeria, Belgium, Cameroon, Chad, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, France, Guinea, Lebanon, Libya, Switzerland, and Tunis. 

The conference was sponsored by Ibrachy Legal Consultancy. Media Partners included The Law, the Egyptian Association for French Jurists (AEJF), International Arbitration Africa (I-ARB) and Law Today.

The French Ambassador to Egypt , H. E. M. Stéphane Romatet inaugurated the Conference and praised CRCICA for its efforts to create an institutionally-empowered “strategic axis for the use of French as the Language of Arbitration.”

On 19 December 2017, Dr. Yassin El-Ayouty delivered a lecture titled “International Dispute Settlement: Lessons Learned”.  Dr. El-Ayouty is the Founder and President of SUNSGLOW-Global Training in the Rule of Law. The lecture emphasized the increasing importance of arbitration vis-à-vis litigation. Some particular cases were approached. Interactive discussions followed the lecture.

On 12 December 2017, CRCICA organized a significant conference on: The Belt and Road Initiative: Economic Legal Landscape and Dispute Settlement in collaboration with the Beijing International Arbitration Center (BIAC) and the Kuala Lumpur Regional Centre for Arbitration ( now the Asian International Arbitration Centre "AIAC"). The conference was sponsored by Shahid Law Firm. Institutional supporters were TEDA Suez, Al Tamimi & Co and Rizkana & Partners. Media partners were Xinhua News Agency (China’s prime news agency), GAR, TDM, The Law and Law Today. Through an integral program, the conference sent a message of Afro-Asian solidarity in promoting China’s One Belt, One Road Initiative. The Keynote speech: “The Law and Economics of the Visionary OBOR Initiative: Prospects and Challenges” set the scenery. The first session displayed the legal environment in Egypt with regard to the B & R, and the second one arrayed the new prospects for international trade and industry out of both domestic and international perspectives. Particularly significant, this session was remotely attended by an expert speaker from Hong Kong who tackled the sustainability of OBOR economies and the Harmonization of Trade Law. Afterwards, the third session came to handle the financial and contractual framework of infrastructure development projects and the fourth one discussed the impact of the B & R initiative on the future of dispute settlement with specific focus on the BIAC/CRCICA/KLRCA Arbitration Initiative. Attendees came from 14 different countries; Egypt, China, Malaysia, Sudan, France, Nigeria, Canada, Ireland, Qatar, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Hong Kong, and England. The professional profile of participants reflected many business sectors, mainly representing Chinese and Malaysian companies, including construction, oil and gas and telecommunication businesses. Private lawyers, diplomats, NGOs were also represented in the conference. Conference Agenda.