17.10.2023GIAC ARBITRATION DAYS 2023
The 10th annual conference - GIAC Arbitration Days was held on October 11-13 at the Sheraton Grand Metekhi Palace Hotel.The leading conference in the field of alternative dispute resolution was traditionally organized by the Georgian International Arbitration Centre (GIAC), and this year its financial supporters and partners were the USAID Rule of Law Program and the Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP) of the United States Department of Commerce. The conference brought together practitioners interested in arbitration and alternative methods of dispute resolution. About 170 local and international arbitrators, judges, lawyers, and representatives from the academia were registered to attend the events.
On 11-13 October, leading practitioners and experts in the field discussed the trends and challenges in arbitration, including investment protection and dispute settlement, dispute resolution and technology, new challenges in enforcing arbitration agreements and awards, dispute resolution in armed conflicts, the state and future of energy disputes, and settlement of sports disputes.
Besides the panel discussions, GIAC Arbitration Days 2023 included workshops and training: PWC workshop on effective cooperation of legal counsels and quantum experts; Young ICCA – GIAC workshop on practical tips for commencing international arbitration proceedings; and a training on negotiation – before, during, after arbitration.
The Deputy Minister of Justice of Georgia, Beka Dzamashvili, the President of the Georgian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Giorgi Pertaia, Attorney Advisor of the Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP) of the United States Department of Commerce Eric Wenz and the USAID Rule of Law Program Deputy Chief of Party Neil Weinstein addressed the conference participants with a welcome speech.
The keynote speaker of the conference was Loukas A. Mistelis, a Senior Equity Partner at Clyde&Co and the Clive Schmitthoff Professor of Transnational Commercial Law and Arbitration at the Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London. Professor Loukas Mistelis is an acknowledged authority on international dispute resolution and investment treaty law. The topic of the keynote speech was – Arbitration in Times of Crisis: an Opportunity?
Besides the main conference program, the GIAC Arbitration Days envisages several social events, which provided a unique opportunity to the attendees to network and connect with arbitration practitioners from around the world in a more informal environment.
The opening reception was held on October 11 at the State Palace of Ceremonies, while the closing reception was hosted by Andersen/MG Law on October 13. The main media partner of the conference is BMG - Business Media Georgia.
