Recognition and Enforcement of Interim Measures Rendered by an Emergency Arbitrator

By looking into international conventions and arbitration laws and taking into account the legal status of an emergency arbitrator and procedural fairness guaranteed by the emergency arbitrator mechanism, it was clear that some barriers block the enforceability of interim measures granted by an emergency arbitrator, i.e., the arbitrability of claims related to the request for interim measures; the binding nature of interim measures; and public policy concerns. For the arbitrability issue, the current trend is to minimize the application of inarbitrability, especially in the context of international commercial arbitration. In the determination of whether the interim measures issued by an emergency arbitrator are final or not, the doctrine of substance over form shall be adopted. An interim measure is an end, for its very purpose to clarify the parties’ rights in the interim period pending a final decision on the merits. Public policy concerns can be a potential risk for the enforceability of interim measures granted by an emergency arbitrator, although with extreme caution, since it is the last resort to refuse the recognition and enforcement of arbitral decisions.