The New York Arbitration Convention of 1958:Towards a Uniform Judicial Interpretation

The New York Arbitration Convention of 1958 is the cornerstone of
international commercial arbitration. Although judicial interpretation of the
Convention has proceeded since the publication of Albert Jan van den Berg's
classic commentary, his extraordinarily thorough analysis remains the
preeminent work on the application and enforcement aspects of the Convention.

Setting out to repair what van den Berg calls "an undesirable degree of
uncertainty" in judicial interpretation of the Convention, his analysis takes
a comparative approach to relevant court decisions in the contracting states.
For each of three main subject areas - the field of application, enforcement
of the agreement, and enforcement of the award - he examines the various
issues, explaining the relevant Convention provisions and analyzing and
comparing the relevant court decisions. For issues on which a consensus is
lacking, he offers an analysis leading to a single valid interpretation. Many
of these interpretations have become virtually settled in current practice.

In addition to case law, the author takes into account the legislative history
of the 1958 Conference and the provisions of earlier arbitration conventions.

This is a true classic in the sense that its immediate usefulness has never
flagged over the nearly three decades of its availability. Arbitrators and
judges everywhere have leaned on it, and continue to lean on it, for the depth
and clarity of its understanding of the law of international commercial
arbitration. While it is a standard academic work in the field, its proven
great practical value to jurists and practitioners persists.