Summary: 

Arbitration is an expeditious and practicable methodology for resolving a commercial dispute. This is also a private strategy and out of the judiciary courts, Contemporarily, the Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP) and Bangladesh International Arbitration Centre (BIAC) cooperatively categorized a programme for International Commercial Arbitration. Principally, BIAC is the foundation or convention which conducts arbitration mechanisms in Bangladesh. And CLDP is a section of the US Department of Commerce, that operates or performs to implement commercial law amendments in evolving nations to additional American foreign policy objectives. 

Content: 

On February 12 and 13, a workshop on “International Commercial Arbitration: Arbitration Awards and Enforcement” and a consultative conference on “Amendment on Arbitration Act 2001” were both held at a city hotel as part of the program. 

In that program, the idea of a required security deposit, in accordance with Justice Muhammad Khurshid Alam Sarkar, will significantly lower the number of pointless challenges to arbitral awards. Additionally, the university should be listed as a subject of ADR in the course syllabus in order to guarantee long-term success. Mahbubur Rahman, the Chairman of BIAC, expressed his appreciation for this type of session, spoke about the need for institutional arbitration in Bangladesh, and described how BIAC operates. 

At the opening session, Kaiser A. Chowdhury, the CEO of BIAC, welcomed the experts and attendees. In promoting ADR in Bangladesh, he complimented the collaboration between BIAC and CLDP and pushed for the implementation of the global best practice framework. During the consultation session, a distinguished panel of speakers discussed the problems with Bangladesh’s legal system for arbitration and possible solutions. The Head of Rahman’s Chambers, Mohammed Forrukh Rahman, Advocate, Supreme Court of Bangladesh, was one of the 30 participants in this session. 

During discussions, they highlighted the shortcomings of the current Arbitration Act of 2001 and made wise recommendations for its adjustments or amendments. To promote ADR in Bangladesh, they also suggested having similar meetings with the pertinent ministries. Kaiser A. Chowdhury and Grishma Pradhan, attorneys-advisors (international), CLDP, Office of the General Council, US Department of Commerce, then presented certificates to the attendees.

Deputy Chairman, Board of Directors, Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC), and Co-Head of International Arbitration Practice, Allen & Gledhill; Rishma Pradhan, Attorney-Advisor (International), Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP), Office of the General Counsel, US Department of Commerce; V Bala, Deputy Head, Shipping and International Trade at Rajah and Tann; and Chong Yee Leong, conducted the workshop and consultation session.

In order to guarantee long-term success, he recommended that ADR be added to university curricula and that BIAC expand its course and training offerings on arbitration. Mahbubur Rahman, Chairman of BIAC, expressed his appreciation for the workshop held as a result of BIAC and CLDP’s collaborative engagement and provided a brief overview of the organization’s operations. In Bangladesh, he emphasized the importance of institutional arbitration and asked for its further promotion.

During discussions, the panelists pointed out the limitations of the current Arbitration Act of 2001 and offered insightful suggestions for appropriate revisions. They also advised holding similar discussions with the relevant ministries to promote ADR in Bangladesh. A section of the US Department of Commerce called CLDP works to implement commercial legal reforms in developing nations in order to further US foreign policy objectives. 

Picture and Article sources: The Financial Express and BIAC