PERMANENT COURT OF ARBITRATION

PERMANENT COURT OF ARBITRATION

Subject: International Organisations

Context: Courts in five countries, including the U.S. and the U.K., have given recognition to an arbitration award that asked India to return $1.4 billion to Cairn Energy plc.

The company had moved courts in nine countries to enforce the December 21 award from a three-member tribunal at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Netherlands.

Concept :

Permanent Court of Arbitration

• Established in: 1899.
• HQ: Hague, Netherlands.
• It is an intergovernmental organization dedicated to serve the international community in the field of dispute resolution and to facilitate arbitration and other forms of dispute resolution between States.
• The PCA has a three-part organizational structure consisting of:
• Administrative Council- to oversee its policies and budgets,
• Members of the Court- a panel of independent potential arbitrators, and
• International Bureau- its Secretariat, headed by the Secretary-General.
• It has Financial Assistance Fund which aims at helping developing countries meet part of the costs involved in international arbitration or other means of dispute settlement offered by the PCA.