The UK Jurisdiction Taskforce (UKJT) has announced an open consultation on the Digital Dispute Resolution Rules, to be held on February 26 2021 at 3:30pm.
The rules support a new arbitration procedure that will enable quick, informal and cost-effective resolution of disputes arising from new digital technologies such as smart contracts, blockchain and fintech.
A key objective is to allow those involved to take full advantage of the flexibility offered by UK arbitration to tailor dispute resolution procedures to the distinctive features of such technologies, and to ensure that disputes will be resolved quickly by arbitrators with appropriate expertise.
This work follows the publication of the UKJT's Legal Statement on Cryptoassets and Smart Contracts in November 2019.
The open consultation will provide an opportunity to hear from the team that has drafted the rules and post questions to the speakers.
Anne Rose, who is on the drafting team and is a panellist at this webinar and co-leads the Blockchain Group at Mishcon de Reya said; "The importance of these rules cannot be overstated. Disputes and access to resolution is known to be time consuming and costly, often prohibitively so. These rules, in conjunction with a tech-enabled online dispute resolution platform, aim to provide SMEs and others with a speedy, cheap and easily accessible solution to settle disputes arising out of novel digital technologies."
The consultation invites comments on the following questions:
- Is there a need for or advantage in a new arbitral process aimed at facilitating the rapid, informal and cost-effective resolution of disputes arising out of novel digital technologies?
- Does the process as described in the draft rules meet that need?
- And if not, why?
Sign up for the consultation here.
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