Anti-suit Injunctions after West Tankers Case: Job not Justifiable

Abstract

European Court of Justice’s (ECJ) decision in the West Tankers case, although not unexpected, is disappointing for the discipline of arbitration. This decision seems to have been given in apparent disregard of ECJ’s old jurisprudence laid down on arbitration exception in the Brussels I Regulation and more specifically the issuance of an anti-suit injunction in relation to arbitration that in fact falls in the exception of the Brussels I Regulation. This paper explores the judgements decided by ECJ to demonstrate the lacunas in its decision in the West Tankers case and also proposes the way outs in this predicament.

Key words: Arbitration, anti-suit injunctions, West Tankers, Brussels I Regulations, New York Convention