1 The Law Applicable to International Arbitration in New York

This chapter focuses on applicable arbitration law in the context of arbitration agreements and awards that fall under the New York Convention or the Panama Convention, and how those two treaties interact with the U.S. Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), New York state law, and possibly foreign law in the context of international arbitration in New York. It first summarizes the FAA and explains FAA preemption of state law that is inconsistent with the FAA. The chapter then discusses the application of the Conventions and difficult issues that can arise when determining the applicable law. In particular, it focuses on choice of law issues that arise when enforcing the agreement to arbitrate under Article II of the New York Convention. U.S. courts have struggled to employ a consistent choice of law analysis when interpreting the “null and void” provisions in Article II(3) of the Convention.