Bahrain, Singapore to establish international commercial court
Agencies | Manama
The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com
The Government of Bahrain and Singapore signed a treaty today to establish the Bahrain International Commercial Court (BICC) in Bahrain and a designated body in Singapore.
The treaty was signed by Nawaf bin Mohamed Al Maawda, Minister of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments, and Kasiviswanathan Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law of Singapore during a virtual meeting.
The treaty aims to promote the international rule of law and boost international trade by developing transformative systems for the resolution of disputes in international trade and endorsing a transnational system of commercial justice.
The two countries have negotiated a treaty finding a balance between party autonomy and public policy providing opt-in and opt-out models for the commercial court and the appeal mechanism, whilst the re-issuance of decisions allows for safeguarding of notions of public policy.
The cooperation between the two international commercial courts will allow for the development of better standards for international commercial dispute resolution, which will address the current challenges users face when attempting to resolve their disputes.
The signing of the treaty marks another milestone since the Bahrain and Singapore judiciaries signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Cooperation and Memorandum of Guidance as to the Enforcement of Money Judgments when Chief Justice Menon led a delegation to visit Bahrain in May 2023.
Al Maawda said that this treaty is a transformative step towards strengthening the rule of law and promoting access to justice on an international level.
"This treaty provides a framework for cooperation between Bahrain and Singapore to ensure the interests and rights of the international business community are safeguarded and protected," he added.
Jan Paulsson, Judge of the Bahrain Court of Cassation, said that Singapore has positioned its internationally acclaimed Singapore International Commercial Court at the disposal of parties who desire the security of possible review by a body having a proven track record.
"BICC will hear all international arbitration related cases in due course - it will be a relatively marginal adjustment as Bahrain is already a bilingual jurisdiction and cases heard in English are dealt with by international judges even at the level of the court of cassation," Paulsson said.
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