CCA 7/121

This case involved whether the Egyptian courts had jurisdiction to rule on the setting aside of a foreign arbitration award.

Background

A Danish Agricultural Company requested the enforcement of an arbitral award issued in Denmark according to the Rules of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC Rules) before the Alexandria Court of First Instance. An Egyptian British Company filed a lawsuit before the Cairo Court of Appeal, requesting the setting aside of said award. The Court decided that it lacked jurisdiction to rule on the challenge made by the company. It noted that the application of the Egyptian Arbitration Law was limited by its Article 1 to arbitration proceedings held in Egypt and international arbitration proceedings which the Parties agreed to submit to the Egyptian Arbitration Law and that this position corresponded to Egypt's commitment under the New York Convention to recognise and enforce foreign arbitral awards, and to the Parties' agreement to hold arbitration proceedings outside of Egypt without submitting them to the Egyptian Arbitration Law, with the result that they had agreed that their dispute should not be covered by the jurisdiction of the Egyptian Courts.

Decision