Procedure and Evidence

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Arbitration procedure and evidence are largely yours to shape, and we craft document production, witness and expert strategy, and hearing plans under institutional and ad hoc rules to put your strongest case in front of the tribunal.

Arbitration is not litigation with a different letterhead. Procedure and evidence are mostly built by the parties, which means the rules of engagement are themselves part of the contest. We design arbitration procedure and evidence strategy, covering document production, witness testimony, expert evidence, and hearing conduct under institutional and ad hoc rules, so the process plays to your strengths instead of your opponent's.

Shaping The Procedural Order

The first procedural order sets the tempo for the whole case. We negotiate that framework hard, pushing for schedules, page limits, and disclosure scope that fit your position rather than the other side's. We adapt to civil-law and common-law instincts on the panel, and we use the IBA Rules on the Taking of Evidence as a shared reference point when arbitrators come from different legal traditions and expect different things.

Document Production

Arbitral disclosure is narrower than U.S. discovery, and that is a feature to exploit. We draft tailored Redfern Schedule requests that get the documents that matter, and we resist sprawling demands designed to bury you in cost. With our software background, we handle electronic evidence, source code, and large data sets efficiently, scoping searches so production stays proportionate and the truly relevant material actually surfaces.

Witnesses And Experts

Most arbitrations rise or fall on witness statements and expert reports rather than live surprises. We prepare fact witnesses and develop expert evidence on damages, technical, and industry questions, then test the other side's experts through written rebuttal and cross-examination. We are comfortable with witness conferencing, or hot-tubbing, where competing experts are questioned together and the technical disagreements get exposed in real time.

Frequently asked questions

There's no single fixed code. Parties often adopt the IBA Rules on the Taking of Evidence or the Prague Rules, or they write a bespoke procedural order. Compared to court litigation, tribunals have wide discretion to decide how evidence is handled, so a lot is up to what you negotiate.

It's much narrower. Instead of broad discovery, you have to identify specific documents or tightly defined categories, show they're relevant and material to the outcome, and show they aren't already in your own possession. Parties commonly use a Redfern Schedule to lay out each request, the basis for it, and the response.

Generally not if they're a third party, because tribunals don't have the power to compel non-parties. Party witnesses usually give their direct testimony through written witness statements. In some countries, national arbitration laws let you ask a court to help compel a witness.

Experts give opinions on technical, financial, or legal questions. Each party can bring its own expert, and the tribunal can appoint an independent one too. Expert evidence usually starts with written reports, followed by oral examination or witness conferencing, where opposing experts are questioned together.

It's the early meeting where the tribunal and parties set the timetable, the procedural rules, the scope of document production, and the hearing dates. It shapes how the entire case will run, so it pays to come in prepared with the schedule and process you want rather than reacting to someone else's proposal.

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