A. LEGISLATION AND RULES A.1 Legislation International arbitration in Australia continues to be governed by the International Arbitration Act 1974 (Cth) (IAA). There have been no amendments to the IAA in the past year. In December 2023, Australia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced the commencement of negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), with negotiations concluding on 17 September 2024. The CEPA treaty was subsequently signed on 6 November 2024, and the…

A. LEGISLATION AND RULES A.1 Legislation International arbitration in Australia continues to be governed by the International Arbitration Act 1974(Cth) (IAA). There have been no amendments to the IAA in the past year. Australia has entered into two new free trade agreements, one with 14 other Indo-Pacific countries and one with India. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) entered into force on 1 January 2022 with 10 original parties: Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, China,…

AUSTRALIA Jo Delaney Charlotte Hendriks and Anita Juric A. LEGISLATION AND RULES A.1      Legislation International arbitration continues to be governed by the International Arbitration Act 1974 (Cth) (IAA). There have been no further amendments to the IAA this year. In 2020, Australia signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), alongside 14 other signing countries, comprising the world’s largest free trade agreement. The RCEP has not yet entered into force, however the Australian Government is working…