Variations of the quote “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change,” are often attributed to Charles Darwin. Those may have not been Darwin’s exact words but the point stands that survival requires adaptation. That stands true in the world of commercial arbitration as well. For decades, parties, counsel and arbitrators have enjoyed the benefits provided by arbitration, among those: relatively …
News & Insights
A Possible Change to the Value of Arbitral Injunctions
CCA Fellow Theo Cheng examines how the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Trump v. CASA, Inc. may affect the perceived value of injunctive relief in arbitration. Although arbitral tribunals can issue effective interim and emergency relief, their authority generally extends only to the parties before them—a limitation traditionally viewed as a disadvantage compared with federal courts. By restricting federal courts’ ability to issue nationwide injunctions benefiting nonparties, CASA narrows that …
CCA Webinar – From Record to Reasoned Award: How Arbitrators Can Put Clearbrief to Work
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Mock Exercises for Commercial Arbitrations
I have previously written about the value of mock exercises for lawyers preparing for trials or appellate arguments (see “What Mock Exercises Reveal that Briefs Cannot” New York Law Journal April 2, 2026*). The point I made is that mock exercises are invaluable because they provide the lawyers with the opportunity to test their arguments before an experienced former judge or experienced litigator. The mock judge asks tough questions and forces the attorneys to focus on the strengths …
CCA Associates Mentorship Program – Class of 2026
Meet the 2026 - 2028 CCA Associates Stephanie Curington, Esq. (Curington ADR Legal Solutions, LLC) is an attorney and independent neutral with a wide range of legal specialties including labor and employment, healthcare, and intellectual property. She began her legal career as an associate at Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP, where she practiced patent law. Ms. Curington later served as an Administrative Judge with the District of Columbia Office of Employee …
The Mexican Judicial Reform: Why Businesses Are Turning to Arbitration
Mexico is experiencing one of the most significant institutional transformations in its modern legal history. The judicial reform approved in 2024 fundamentally changes the composition of the federal judiciary by introducing the popular election of judges, magistrates, and Supreme Court justices. While supporters argue that the reform will increase democratic accountability, many participants in the business community have expressed concerns about its potential impact on judicial independence, …
Why In-House Counsel Must Drive the Arbitrator Selection Call
Your team spent weeks—maybe months—negotiating an important transaction. Someone, possibly not the deal lawyers, chose arbitration over the courts as a last-minute clause before signing. Now a dispute has arisen, arbitration is looming, it may last more than a year at significant cost, and you must select an arbitrator. Outside counsel will present candidates, and your instinct may be to defer to them—but don’t. Selecting an arbitrator isn’t a legal formality. It’s the equivalent of hiring …
The Silicon Arbiter: AI-Generated Arbitration Awards and the Federal Arbitration Act – Part II
The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) systems has made urgent a question that would have seemed absurd to the drafters of the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA): whether algorithms might generate binding arbitral awards without human involvement. This two-part article concludes that, under the FAA as currently written, such awards cannot be enforced. Yet this article does not end with a negative prognosis for AI’s place in arbitration. Instead, it makes suggestions for legislative reform …
What Arbitrators Actually Think About Your Expert
Republished with permission from JAMS. What is and is not effective expert testimony Unlike a jury, an arbitrator is rarely seeing anything for the first time. That changes everything. Experienced arbitrators have heard hundreds of experts — they recognize the theater, they spot the evasions, and they dislike witnesses who sacrifice credibility for advocacy. The qualities that make an expert effective before an arbitrator are not always the same qualities that resonate with a jury. Over …
The Venezuela Dispute Resolution Conundrum
In “The Venezuela Dispute Resolution Conundrum,” Marc J. Goldstein examines the complex legal and political risks facing energy and mining companies considering new investments in Venezuela. He focuses on OFAC’s June 2026 General Licenses, which require contracts to be governed by the laws of a U.S. jurisdiction and related dispute resolution proceedings to occur in the United States, United Kingdom, France, or Singapore. The commentary explores how political instability, future governmental …
Feliu Case Summaries, June 2026
Prepared by Alfred Feliu, a Fellow of the College of Commercial Arbitrators, the Feliu Case Summaries (June 2026) provide a practical snapshot of notable, recent decisions shaping arbitration and ADR across U.S. federal and state courts. Organized by topic, the digest highlights key developments affecting arbitration agreements, threshold jurisdictional disputes, delegation and waiver arguments, unconscionability challenges, class and representative action issues, hearing and evidentiary …
