The pandemic crisis has hit our judicial system. Courts have had to close their physical doors to protect the judiciary, their personnel and the public. Many are struggling to convert their technological backbones to allow employees to function remotely and to conduct at least emergency matters. During these necessary transitions, another curve is growing, the […]
DOJ Sends Merger Challenge to Arbitration
Those of us in law’s antitrust community sometimes wonder if we have silently labored in distant fields, known only to “deep-state intellectuals” in the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission. As arbitrators or mediators, we wait patiently by the phone—happily taking on a wide range of business disputes, but seldom seeing cases in our favored […]
California Considers Strengthening International Arbitration Law – Will Benefit Tech Companies
Senate Bill 766, which has passed the California Senate and has had its first reading in the Assembly, and is expected to be signed into law within this year, will confirm the right of foreign lawyers to represent parties in international commercial arbitrations with situs in California. With the enactment of SB 766, California’s economic […]
Arbitrators Are Not Judges
When I share with non-lawyers at a cocktail party what I do for a living, their response is often “Oh, like a private judge!” I usually mumble, “Yes, sort of” but the better answer is “Not really, not at all.” The distinction is particularly evident in the technology sector. Here’s why. Judges are appointed […]
Dispute in Space–Arbitrate!
Google’s Street View has taken flight with a new feature that allows users the feeling of being in outer space. Street View is a technology feature in Google Maps and Google Earth that functions as an interactive virtual map. Street View displays panoramas across all seven continents and in late July introduced a new location […]
Controlling the costs of arbitration: “Fixed Fees for Arbitrators”
One of the most vibrant and intricate issues in international arbitration is unquestionably the costs that go along with this mechanism to solve disputes. Service providers and users across the globe seem unable to find a satisfactory framework to a binomial “cost & time-efficient” procedure with excellence. It is true that arbitral institutions are constantly […]
Musings from the Annual Meeting of the ABA Dispute Resolution Conference
Thousands of lawyers and others came to San Francisco from April 19-22 for the annual Spring conference of the Dispute Resolution section. A few items caught my attention. First, it was gratifying to see how many of our SVAMC members were speakers or panelists. Gary Benton, Harrie Samaras (Section Vice Chair), Rod Thompson (a Program […]
Google’s Waymo vs. Uber: A Legal Skirmish Amongst Tech Rivals
You may have noticed a little skirmish underway between Waymo, Alphabet’s self-driving car unit, and rival Uber, described as “what could be a long and acrimonious battle between the two tech rivals over trade secrets” in their efforts to commercialize self-driving cars. In its San Francisco’s federal court litigation, Waymo claims that its ex-employee Anthony […]
10 Tips For Presenting Complex Cases In Arbitration
Five Key Lessons Learned on International Tech Disputes – The SVAMC Smarter, Faster, Cheaper Tech Dispute Conference
Silicon Valley Arbitration and Mediation Center Smarter, Faster, Cheaper Technology Dispute Resolution Conference Open Forum with Silicon Valley – September 16, 2016 FIVE KEY LESSONS LEARNED ON INTERNATIONAL TECH DISPUTES: 1. Court Judgments Are Not Valid in Foreign Countries – But Arbitration Awards Are Globally Enforceable Litigation: Assume the winning party in a litigation needs […]