AstapovLawyers represented a Russia-based clothing retailer

AstapovLawyers International Law Group represented a Russia-based clothing retailer in arbitration proceedings before International Commercial Arbitration Court at the Zürich Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Switzerland) in a dispute valued at over one and a half million dollars with a German wholesaler.

The dispute arose out of the respondent’s alleged failure to order the agreed annual minimum amount of goods as envisaged by the distribution contract. The arbitration proceedings were bifurcated and the Tribunal first considered whether it had jurisdiction to hear the claim and counterclaim. Although the initial wording of the arbitration clause was defective and bore no reference to Swiss Rules of International Arbitration, the Tribunal accepted that it had jurisdiction on the basis of further written exchanges of the parties. The Tribunal disregarded the contractual clause on the procedure of making amendments to the contract and relied on the doctrine of separability of arbitration agreement having concluded that this provision did not extend to amending the arbitration agreement. Shortly after the arbitration proceedings progressed into the merits stage the claims and counterclaims were dropped.

The case was handled by partner Eugene Blinov and associate Anna Sharykina.