KU Law News
KU Law News
Feb. 13, 2008
Professor to help clarify law of international commercial arbitration
Christopher Drahozal
A University of Kansas School of Law professor will play a major role in solidifying the legal principles that guide international commercial arbitration as part of a new project being undertaken by the American Law Institute.
Christopher R. Drahozal, the John M. Rounds Professor of Law, has been asked to serve as an associate reporter for the “Restatement of the U.S. Law
of International Commercial Arbitration.”
The ALI – a prestigious organization of legal practitioners, judges and academics – clarifies and simplifies legal principles that have developed, often haphazardly, through case law. This is frequently accomplished through “restatements,” which collect and analyze case law from various courts and other authoritative sources governing a particular area of law.
In issuing these restatements, the ALI identifies majority and minority views on various aspects of a subject, as well as trends in the law, said Gail Agrawal, dean of the law school.
“The restatements, which are updated regularly, have become an essential research tool for practitioners, judges and academics, and are enormously influential in the development of law," she said.
Drahozal, who is known internationally for his scholarly work on the law and economics of dispute resolution, says the project is being started now because of the importance of arbitration in resolving international commercial disputes and because U.S. law governing international arbitration has serious limitations.
“The governing statute and principal treaty – the New York Convention – do not address many important issues, and courts have reached conflicting decisions in a variety of areas,” he said. “My hope, at least, is that a restatement of U.S. law on international commercial arbitration can reduce the uncertainty facing parties who are considering whether to arbitrate in the United States, as well as assist courts in using U.S. law to enforce arbitration agreements and awards.”
As an associate reporter, Drahozal will be responsible for drafting and revising substantial portions of the restatement, in consultation with other project reporters and committees of experts in the field. The result will be a lengthy treatise dealing with the law of international commercial arbitration.
The bulk of initial drafting for the project will take place over the next several years. Drahozal will be on sabbatical during the 2008-2009 academic year.