Future of International Commercial Courts Conference brings together global judicial leaders in Bahrain
Manama, Nov. 7 (BNA): The Council for International Dispute Resolution, the Bahrain Chamber for Dispute Resolution (BCDR), and the Global Justice Bay hosted a conference, “The Future of International Commercial Courts: Towards Transnational Justice,” at the Ritz-Carlton, Bahrain. This pivotal event followed the launch of the Bahrain International Commercial Court (BICC), a unique bilingual institution established by treaty with Singapore and modeled on the Singapore International Commercial Court.
The conference opened with welcome addresses from Shaikh Khalid bin Ali Al Khalifa, Deputy Chair of the Supreme Judicial Council and President of the Court of Cassation, Bahrain, and Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon of the Supreme Court of Singapore. The programme featured a panel moderated by Professor Marike Patrani Paulsson, Secretary-General of the Council for International Dispute Resolution, which included Professor Jan Paulsson, President of BICC; Justice Philip Jeyaretnam from Singapore International Commercial Court; and Professor Joan Donoghue, Former President at International Court of Justice, and the Judge at BICC; discussing “International Commercial Courts: The New Arbitration of 2025 and Beyond.” The dialogue explored the evolving role of commercial courts as neutral forums for global business, the growing interplay between arbitration and judicial mechanisms, and strategies to foster transnational justice in a rapidly changing legal landscape.
Justice Chile Eboe-Osuji of the Caribbean Court of Justice delivered the keynote address, “No Commerce Without Peace,” emphasising the essential connection between effective dispute resolution, legal certainty, and economic growth. The event concluded with remarks from Murali Pillai, Senior Minister of State for Law, Singapore, who highlighted expanding bilateral judicial cooperation between Singapore and Bahrain, and reaffirmed both countries’ commitment to advancing international best practices.
Participants included judges, government officials, international legal experts, and commercial practitioners from more than a dozen countries. Discussions focused on the impact of new international courts on commerce and investment, innovations in cross-border dispute resolution, and Bahrain’s vision for its emerging status as a regional hub for commercial justice and global legal collaboration.