Key takeaways

• The English High Court has dismissed an application to enforce a Russian arbitral award that had been annulled by the Russian courts.
• The claimant alleged that the decisions of the Russian courts were procured by bias and should not be recognised by the English Court. Although critical of the Russian courts’ findings, the English High Court was ultimately not persuaded that the errors of law were so extreme that they could only be ascribed to bias against the claimant.
• Whilst English courts are willing to review decisions of a foreign court annulling an award in some detail, this case is a clear reminder of the challenges in seeking to enforce an award in England if it has been annulled by the court of the seat.