Leveraging technology in Australia’s growing arbitration landscape

IN Partnership with

Arbitration is gaining traction in Australia, and we're seeing a rising number of construction and infrastructure disputes. An expert examines common challenges faced by legal practitioners and explores how the right technology can help

IT'S BEEN a busy year for arbitration in Australia, and the volume and complexity of disputes are only set to increase. The last decade has seen significant growth in international and domestic arbitration cases. In 2022, the Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration (ACICA) reported being involved in arbitrations concerning $24 billion over the previous 10 years, with construction and infrastructure disputes accounting for approximately $4 billion. As further evidence of this growth, ACICA also released updates to its arbitration rules and formalised an agreement with Dexus Place to offer full-service facilities for arbitration hearings and mediations. Commenting on the growth of arbitration in Australia, Opus 2’s senior business development consultant for APAC, Katie-Beth Jones, says a wider range of industries are now choosing arbitration to resolve disputes.

Opus 2 is a legal technology specialist with vast experience in legal proceedings. We work closely with lawyers to create solutions that allow them to deliver more personalised services and enhanced experiences to their clients. We focus on removing friction in managing information and processes so legal teams can spend more time focused on achieving the best possible outcomes for their clients. Opus 2’s multi-award-winning solutions help law firms to transform their international arbitration practices, enabling them to deliver unique services that bring their dispersed teams, clients and other stakeholders together seamlessly. By connecting all the stakeholders from the outset in one environment, arbitration teams are delivering greater cost savings, stronger client services and greener arbitration proceedings.

Find out more

“The Australian arbitration landscape is often underestimated. While it may appear to have a domestic focus, it’s truly a global arena with both local and international companies. Notably, we’ve witnessed a significant uptick in construction and mining disputes”

Katie-Beth Jones, Opus 2

“The Australian arbitration landscape is often underestimated. While it may appear to have a domestic focus, it’s truly a global arena, with both local and international companies. Notably, we’ve witnessed a significant uptick in construction and mining disputes,” Jones tells Australasian Lawyer. The construction and engineering sectors hold significant importance in Australia's arbitration landscape. Besides Australian engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) companies with extensive expertise in both domestic and international projects, several major international players from the US, the UK, France, South Korea and Spain are active in this lucrative market, currently valued at US$163.34 billion and expected to grow to US$213.31 billion by 2028. “These complex, high-stakes multinational disputes involve parties from various time zones. Legal professionals advising these sectors find themselves at the epicentre of intricate, high-value disputes spanning multiple countries and time zones, involving parties from the United States, Europe and Asia,” Jones explains. “These dynamics have a profound impact on the scheduling of arbitration hearings and coordinating communication among stakeholders. Engaging experts and witnesses from different continents also presents unique logistical considerations when arranging participation in these hearings within Australia’s thriving international arbitration landscape. “Opus 2 is dedicated to elevating Australia’s profile as a prominent hub for arbitration on the global stage. We collaborate closely with key stakeholders in the Australian arbitration community, including ACICA, to devise effective solutions for these challenges.”

As the complexity of arbitration increases, legal practitioners are looking towards some promising tech solutions – but adopting new technology is a significant decision. To make the right choice, Jones emphasises several key tips. First and foremost, align the chosen technology with your legal team’s strategy and objectives. Integrate it from the outset to harness its full potential throughout the entire case life cycle. Jones also highlights the importance of selecting a technology platform that is scalable and configurable, as well as one that is agile and continually improving based on customer feedback.

She advises considering whether the technology solution can seamlessly integrate with other tools already in use at the firm. It’s wise to opt for providers with a proven track record in the legal industry, offering flexible solutions that can adapt to your firm’s evolving needs.

When preparing an arbitration case, effective collaboration is paramount. Legal teams must work together on evidence compilation, legal research and document organisation. In this regard, Jones underscores the inevitability of handling a large volume of documents in complex arbitration cases. Hence, having a versatile system in place from the outset is crucial. Opus 2, recognising this need, developed Opus 2 Hearings, a secure, cloud-based platform featuring integrated collaboration tools designed to support the entire process of managing a dispute, from hearing preparation to its conclusion. Furthermore, the platform serves as an advanced document management system, streamlining centralised communication and collaboration, including note-taking, annotation and hyperlinking. It allows parties to establish document protocols in advance for sharing case-related materials, which proves particularly valuable when extensive document sharing is anticipated before the hearing. This approach helps prevent a last-minute surge of documents into the system. Collectively, these tools empower all parties involved to efficiently manage the evidence. Jones explains that arbitrators or tribunals handling multiple cases simultaneously greatly appreciate a platform like Opus 2 Hearings. She says, “Our platform not only provides early access to case documents, expediting the comprehension of the dispute’s intricacies, but it also offers advanced security features that surpass traditional file-sharing methods like USB drives. This ensures the utmost confidentiality and integrity of the case throughout the entire proceedings.” During the hearing, each party enjoys a private workspace for secure annotation and note-sharing, either privately or with specific team members. This feature allows arbitrators or tribunals to actively engage in the hearing process, utilising tools like tagging and annotations to identify key points for subsequent reference when crafting the award.

KATIE-BETH JONES, OPUS 2

In the context of complex arbitrations, partnering with a trusted provider with extensive experience and expertise in such matters is essential. By way of example, in 2016, a dispute arose from a project related to the design and construction of a 2.1km-long jetty, famously known as Gorgon Jetty – a crucial component of one of the world’s most substantial natural gas projects, and representing Australia’s largest single-resource development. Opus 2 was engaged for its Hearing services and hearing-room design expertise in a Perth-seated UNCITRAL arbitration involving parties from Australia, France and Portugal.

In this complex dispute, Opus 2 played a pivotal role in housing documents and evidence for a collective of 28 users from both the claimant and respondents’ sides, allowing parties to efficiently create electronic hearing bundles and collaborate effectively with stakeholders worldwide. The arbitration spanned three tranches in 2019, for a total of 32 hearing days. At the time, there were no dedicated hearing venues or spaces fit for such a purpose. Opus 2’s hearings expertise was instrumental in creating a secure ergonomic electronic hearing room, fashioned from the ground up within the confines of a hotel ballroom. Furthermore, Opus 2 provided invaluable real-time transcription services and electronic presentation of evidence (EPE), a task that included handling numerous intricate Excel documents, notorious for their complexity when presented during hearings.

Finding the right approach to supporting complex hearings

The importance of collaboration

Finding the right approach to supporting complex hearings

The importance of collaboration

Published 09 Oct 2023

News

Practice Areas

Surveys & Reports

Events

Best In Law

Resources

Companies

People

Newsletter

Authors

External contributors

About us

Privacy

RSS

News

Practice Areas

Surveys & Reports

Events

Best in Law

Resources

Companies

People

Newsletter

Authors

External contributors

About us

Privacy

RSS

News

Practice Areas

Surveys & Reports

Events

Best in Law

Resources

Companies

People

Newsletter

Authors

External contributors

About us

Privacy

RSS

Opus 2: Areas of specialty

International arbitration

In-person hearings

Electronic document bundling

Evidence and witness management

Hybrid and virtual hearings

Electronic presentation of evidence

Real-time transcription

The role of trusted partnerships

$24bn

Arbitration in Australia: The figures

From 2002 to 2022, ACICA was involved in arbitrations concerning

$18.8bn

were concerning energy and resources disputes

$4bn

were concerning construction and infrastructure

Source: Australian Centre for International Commercial Arbitration

Collaborative partnerships between the technology partner and law firm are important because they ultimately lead to the development of more effective and tailored technology solutions. Opus 2 consistently seeks client input to identify areas of concern, evolving needs, and opportunities for improvement, upholding the practice of a true partner from the very beginning. It also maintains a vigilant focus on privacy risks, recognising that security and privacy are paramount in the legal sector, as noted by Jones.

Prioritising client-centric innovation

“We foster open channels of communication with legal practitioners and industry experts to tackle evolving challenges and trends, including security, confidentiality, and efficiency,” says Jones. “We also routinely conduct research surveys among our clients to ensure we remain aligned with their evolving needs and priorities.” Ultimately, technology will continue to advance – but while there are many tools and platforms available, Jones says the practitioners can harness technology that drives the progression of arbitration. It pays to be proactive in expanding your team’s knowledge base and skill set rather than simply waiting for the next ‘revolutionary’ technology to emerge or being forced to adapt by external circumstances.

Katie-Beth Jones, Opus 2

“By cultivating a comprehensive understanding of the capabilities of technology already available, legal practitioners can thoughtfully select and utilise the appropriate tools to enhance their practices,” Jones says. To learn more about Opus 2 and how its solutions can augment the management of your arbitrations, click here.

IN Partnership with

In-person hearings

Hybrid and virtual hearings

International arbitration

Electronic document bundling

Electronic presentation of evidence

Evidence and witness management

Real-time transcription

Opus 2: Areas of specialty