Proceedings initiated as of 1 January 2021.

As Alexander Fessas, the ICC Court Secretary General, stated at the global launch on 1 December 2020: crystallization of ICC good practice and adaptation to recent developments.

No revolution but a change in continuity.

• More virtual: (i) New! Request for Arbitration and Answer may be filed electronically ( Art. 4(4), 5(3)) (ii) New! Virtual hearings may be organized by the Tribunal by any means, including videoconferencing (Art. 26(1)).
• Faster: Increase of the threshold for Expedited proceedings from 2 MUSD (2017 Rules) to 3 MUSD (approx. 36% of claims are below 2 MUSD and 50% below 5 MUSD) ( Art. 30, Art. 2 App. VI).
• Fewer conflicts of interest: (i) New! Obligation of disclosure of Third Party Funders (existence, identity, economic interest in the outcome of the arbitration) (Art.  11(7)) (ii) New! Possible exclusion by the Tribunal of a new party representatives to avoid a conflict of interest (Art. 17(2)).
• More transparent: New! The Court will communicate the reasons for a majority of its decisions ( Art. 5 App. II).
• Treaty-based investment arbitrations: (i) Prohibition (from now on) for all members of the Tribunal to have the same nationality as that of the parties, unless otherwise agreed ( Art. 13(6)) (ii) Non-application of Emergency Arbitrator Provisions (Art. 29(6)(c)).
• Complex arbitrations: (i) For multiparty or multi-contract arbitrations, a request for joinder may now be made after the constitution of the Tribunal, subject to conditions ( Art. 7(5)) (ii) Expansion of cases of consolidation of arbitrations where all requests for arbitration are made under the same arbitration agreement(s) (Art. 10(b)).
• More security: New! Appointment of all members of the Tribunal by the Court in exceptional circumstances ( Art. 12(9)).
• More awards: New! An additional award may be referred if the Tribunal has ruled infra petita, omitting to decide on a claim raised ( Art. 36(3)).
• More amicable: Encouragement (and not just information) of the parties to consider amicable settlement resolution methods, such as ICC mediation ( App. IV (h)(i)).