ABSTRACT
International business and trade exchanges across international borders have increased enormously over the last few years. In this context, Asia is being widely regarded as the emerging economic powerhouse, in spite of the recent economic recession in some parts of the region. As a natural consequence, this increase in international business activities has brought about an increasing number of trade disputes that are being resolved through arbitration, which is being regarded as one of the most economical and effective alternatives to litigation for settling commercial disputes in Asia and elsewhere across the globe. International commercial arbitration thus has attracted increasing research interest, both from professional (legal as well as arbitral) as well as discoursal perspectives (Bhatia et al., 2008, 2010, 2012). However, relatively little attention has been paid to arbitration in Asia, especially from the point of view of language use. Considering the number of commercial arbitration disputes attracted by some of the key arbitration institutions in Asia, especially those in China, India, Hong Kong, and Singapore, it has become necessary to identify and discuss some of the key challenges in international commercial arbitration practice in Asia, in particular focusing on the hybrid nature of arbitration practice (Bhatia et al., 2010, 2012). In order to do so, I would like to highlight some of the significant aspects of this interdiscursive practice embedded in a mixed arbitration-litigation culture.
