Part II Legal Framework: Courts, Statutes and Treaties, B Judicial Supervision, 1 Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes?

The genesis of the material in this section (B. Judicial Supervision) derives from a decades-old debate about the extent to which an arbitral award’s validity should depend on the law of the country where the proceedings are held. The problem is complex not only because it implicates several legal systems, but also because the place of arbitration sometimes represents a legal fiction.2 An “arbitral seat” is often designated (by the contract or the arbitral institution) to serve as the official venue at which the award is deemed made,3 notwithstanding that hearings...