Barry AK Rider – författare

The Institute of Advanced Legal Studies was founded in 1947, although the idea to establish a national law library and centre for research was conceived over 50 years before this. Since its foundation the IALS has developed a library of international standing and has been able to foster and promote legal research not only in Britain but around the world. It performs a unique role in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth and an increasingly important one in Europe.

To commemorate the Institute jubilee and the inauguration of the Society for Advanced Legal Studies, Professor Barry AK Rider, the IALS''s present Director, has assembled a series of papers which not only trace the Institute''s development into an institution for the advancement of legal research of world class standing, but also illustrate the depth of support that it enjoys from some of the most distinguished and respected legal scholars of today. This volume is therefore a testament to the past and an indication of what the next 50 years will bring - with the Institute at the centre o f advanced legal research in the United Kingdom.

This unique work consists of a selection of key papers presented at the first Anglo-Japanese Comparative Law Conference, held at Jesus College, Cambridge in September 1996. The conference was organised under the auspices of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, University of London; the University of Tsukuba, Japan; and Murdoch University in Australia. The conference brought together a number of leading business lawyers from around the world who discussed the impact of globalisation of business on commercial law. If the internationalisation of trade and business has produced problems for lawyers, the impact of globalisation, particularly in such areas as the capital markets, has proved to be even more problematic. The implications for all those who operate in the commercial and financial sectors, and for those who advise them, of developments in the nature and character of the markets are increasingly significant. The publication will be of particular interest to academics, those involved in trans-national business and legal practitioners.

The great strength of the arbitration process lies in its independence from any particular legal culture. Inevitably, its cross-cultural perspective has brought it to the fore as the preferred means of resolving international commercial disputes.

The Institute of Advanced Legal Studies in London has long been concerned to promote scholarship and research in the law and practice relating to alternative dispute resolution. During its jubilee year, the Institute organised a prestigious series of lectures, which formed the basis of this book on the law pertaining to international arbitration.

The nine authors bring a truly international perspective to their work Their combined experience has involved them in arbitrations In many countries in Europe, Asia, North America and South America; several of them have in addition had various posts in international diplomacy and in major international organisations. They include Dr. Christian Borris, on the civil law versus common law in arbitration culture; Professor Andreas F. Lowenfeld, on the ''mix'' that creates the international arbitration process; Dr. Serge Lazareff, on the search for a common procedural approach; Sigvard Jarvin, who compares the leading international arbitration seats; Jonathon Crook, on arbitration seats in the Far East; Ambassador Malcolm R. Wilkey, on the practicalities of cross-cultural arbitration; Jean Reed Haynes, on the confidentiality of international arbitration; Dr. Horacio A. Grigera Naon, on Latin American arbitration culture; and Dr. Bernardo M. Cremades, on how interactive arbitration overcomes the clash of legal cultures.

Conflicting Legal Cultures in Commercial Arbitration brings international arbitration as it is currently practised into sharp focus, and will be of great value to all practitioners, academics and students in the field.