International Arbitration & Litigation: Preliminary Analysis: What materials do you need?

When researching international arbitration & litigation, keep in mind that there is no centralized source for obtaining all of the legal authorities needed.  Start with secondary sources that explain the several types of legal authority relied upon in international commercial arbitration or litigation.

international commercial arbitration:*

• Expert commentary (books and articles)
• International treaties (both bilateral and multilateral)
  For example:
  • Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards ("New York Convention")
  • Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States ("ICSID Convention")
  • Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs)
• National laws
  For example:
  • National arbitration statute in effect in the arbitration forum
  • UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration
  • National case law (persuasive authority)
• Arbitral rules (international and regional arbitral institutions)
  For example:
  • UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules
  • Commercial Arbitration and Mediation Center for the Americas (CAMCA) Rules
• Law of the dispute
  For example:
  • Arbitration agreement
  • Rules and orders of the arbitration tribunal
• Arbitral awards (persuasive authority; useful for arbitration procedure interpretation, trends in arbitral outcomes, award comparison)

*This article provides a good introduction to international arbitration research methodology: S.I. Strong, Research in International Commercial Arbitration: Special Skills, Special Sources, 29 Am. Rev. Int’l Arb. 119 (2009) or the book:

For international litigation, consult secondary sources followed by applicable treaty law, foreign (national) legislation if necessary, cases especially the forum is a common law jurisdiction, and rules of civil procedure in the forum.

More Research Guides

As with any topic, a research guide is a good place to begin your research.  In fact, research guides are particularly useful places to start when you are new to this topic.

• Jennifer Allison, International Arbitration Research (Harvard Law Libary) (2021).
• Hernando Otero and Omar García-Bolívar, International Arbitration between Foreign Investors and Host States (2017).
• GlobaLex Guides:  Charles Bjork, International Commercial Arbitration
• Gloria Miccioli, ASIL Guide to Electronic Resources for International Law: International Commercial Arbitration.
• Alison Sherwin, International Commercial Arbitration (Columbia Law Library) (2021).

Research tip: Locate more research guides by searching the web using the keywords: legal research guide AND international arbitration.  You can also use Investor-State arbitration or other keywords. You can also look for research guides on international litigation. 

Encyclopedias

Max Planck Encyclopedias of International Law.  This Encyclopedia is a good source for an overview of topics within international law (including private international law).  Provides information on the most important treaties and other documents.  Possible search terms include: 

• arbitral awards
• commercial arbitration
• concessions
• fair and equitable treatment
• investment arbitration
• investment disputes
• investments, bilateral treaties
• investments, international protection
• private international law

Study Guides, Hornbooks

Find more Study Aids by Topic in the Study Aids Research Guide.

Law Library Catalog:

Books + Articles