USCIB/ICC USA sponsored a seminar in Albuquerque, New Mexico on June 14 on international arbitration and how that state’s businesses can use arbitration to mitigate the risks of doing business overseas. Some thirty New Mexico business executives, lawyers and law students attended the presentation, which was opened by Roberta Cooper Ramo, former president of both the American Bar Association and the American Law Institute.

Marek Krasula, counsel for the ICC International Court of Arbitration in New York and David Wilson, partner at Sherman & Howard in Denver, provided an overview of ICC arbitration and how to best draft contracts to provide for it. Matthew Draper, a partner at Draper & Draper in New York and Santa Fe, moderated a panel discussion addressing issues of particular relevance to local companies, such as using arbitration to protect IP rights, recovery of attorneys’ fees by prevailing parties, and keeping the costs of arbitration to a minimum.

“The ICC’s new Expedited Procedures, which apply when less than two million dollars is at stake, reduce significantly the time and cost of dispute resolution, and may be a good fit for New Mexico companies,” said Draper.

Vice Dean of the University of New Mexico School of Law Camille Carey noted in her closing remarks that she hoped the law school would expand opportunities for students to learn about international arbitration.