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Zeina Obeid shares her insights on international arbitration, legal leadership, emerging trends, and the future of cross-border dispute resolution in an exclusive conversation with SCC Times.
At the Mediation Event organised by the Indian High Commission in London, the panelists reinforced that the future of mediation lies not in replacing human mediators with artificial intelligence, but in creating a collaborative model where technology strengthens human-led dispute resolution while preserving its core values of trust, human perception, and understanding.
From Lok Adalats to the Mediation Act, CJI Surya Kant mapped India’s mediation journey at the Indian High Commission in London, while Lord Hamblen, Ms. Brimelow KC and Mr. Dixon placed the UK’s mandatory mediation reforms alongside it.
The fireside chat at the 4th ICA Conference on “Arbitrating Indo-UK Commercial Disputes” examined the challenges of enforcement, arbitration efficiency, judicial intervention, institutional reforms, AI regulation, third-party funding, and investor confidence.
At the UK Supreme Court, Chief Justice of India Justice Surya Kant urged modern legal systems to shift from “forum convenience” to “process convenience,” positioning mediation as the next frontier of commercial justice while reaffirming the complementary role of courts and arbitration.
At a panel discussion at the 4th ICA Conference on “Arbitrating Indo-UK Commercial Disputes”, the speakers agreed that while disputes may be inevitable in business, successful commercial ecosystems were defined not by the absence of disputes, but rather by avoiding them and if they arise, resolving them efficiently, fairly, and with minimal disruption to long-term relationships and commerce.
The Chief Justice of India delivered a thought-provoking keynote address at the 4th International Conference of the ICA on Arbitrating Indo-UK Disputes, urging the global arbitration community to return to the foundational purpose of arbitration and ensure that dispute resolution remains accessible, efficient, and responsive to the needs of modern commerce.
India’s mediation tradition predates its legislation by millennia. England’s mediation culture was built by judicial pressure and adverse costs. At LIDW 2026, practitioners from both jurisdictions found more agreement than disagreement and a shared frustration with what arbitration has become.
From high-level deliberations to global arbitration insights, here are snippets from the Cyprus Arbitration Day 2026, where SCC Times was the sole
“Alternate Dispute Resolution mechanisms or more particularly, arbitration, can only be the chosen method if both/all parties to the dispute can agree that it will be so. This freedom is not only insofar as choosing the medium, but it also encompasses choice of forum, applicable law and to some extent even procedural norms.”
“Institutional arbitration in India must continue to expand its reach, strengthen professional capacity, and deepen engagement with global best practices. Encouraging parties, particularly public sector bodies and large commercial entities, to adopt institutional rules more frequently, will play an important role in this transition”.
Hyderabad-based ADR institution, Amika Arbitration and Mediation Council (AAMC) has been recognised by the UNCITRAL thereby becoming one of only four Indian arbitration institutions to have received such recognition.
The International Chamber of Commerce held the 8th ICC India Conference on International Arbitration in New Delhi on 28-02-2026.
Arjun Ram Meghwal updates Parliament on the progress of Pre-Institution Mediation in commercial disputes under the Commercial Courts Act, 2015.
Day 3 of the seventh edition of AIAC’s Asia ADR week navigated crucial topics of discussion in the field of alternative dispute resolution, such as ADR in construction disputes, role of experts and consultants in construction proceedings, automation driven transformation in the construction industry, and SMART Tunnel dispute.
Day 2 of the seventh edition of AIAC’s Asia ADR week navigated crucial topics of discussion in the field of alternative dispute resolution, such as commercial mediation, arbitration reforms, disputes in E-sports, double hatting, and disclosures.