Kabab-Ji and the Law of the Arbitration Agreement: French and English Courts Clash Once Again
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Key takeaways:
- On 23 June 2020, the Paris Court of Appeal upheld a Paris-seated arbitration award between Kabab-Ji SAL and Kout Food Group that the English Court of Appeal had refused to enforce six months earlier on the grounds that the tribunal had wrongly asserted its jurisdiction.
- Applying different laws to the question of whether or not Kout Food Group was party to the arbitration agreement, the Paris Court of Appeal held that it was a party, while the English Court of Appeal held that it was not.
- The divergence highlights the importance of stipulating the law governing the arbitration agreement, as well as making clear the parties’ intentions regarding non-signatories.