Sorry for the lack of blogging activity lately, I just haven't been able to muster up the motivation to write much. I thought about writing about the LSO concert, but all I had to say was how I've never heard an instrument played the way this German violin soloist played Sibelius' Violin Concerto. Seriously, he could have probably made that damn thing speak Japanese if he wanted. It was a 1711 Stradivarius, once owned by Fritz Kreisler. Probably cost more than my entire existence up to this point. Needless to say, it was nuts.
There's a lot of animosity in the flat right now, stemming from our "dress-up day" and visit to the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA). The LCIA is an independent provider of arbitration services for international business transactions, meaning they will select an arbitrator and help administer the actual arbitration, thus expediting proceedings and making them more efficient. I had been told prior to departing the US that this visit required formal business wear. So I packed up my suit, a dress shirt, a tie, dress socks, and one very bulky (and expensive) pair of shoes for this sole occurrence. The course materials seemed to indicate that there would be a rather extensive tour, maybe a lunch, and hopefully some sort of meet and greet with local arbitration lawyers and/or actual arbitrators. Sure, I'll bite, I'll pack the suit.
Of course, that was not the case. Our extensive visit consisted of the class sitting in a cramped conference room for a 45 minute presentation by one very awkward Englishman, extolling the virtues of the LCIA and rehashing general arbitration elements that we've exhaustively covered in class. No business lunch, no meetings with arbitration lawyers, nothing. To add further insult, we were by far overdressed in comparison to the rest of the LCIA staff. In a word, frustrating.
I'm no stranger to complaining about how education officials handle foreign tours/classes. Anyone who traveled to Japan with the LCCB in 2005 can attest. It seems Hamline isn't immune either. I'm now faced with the prospect of slogging full business dress through Norway for 5 days, just so I could spend 45 minutes sweating to a power point presentation. Lame.
I suppose there always must be a positive though, and the sole positive in this case was the opportunity to look like an actual professional in Europe's largest metropolis. It was fairly gratifying to have an Englishwoman ask me to direct her to Lincoln's Inn Fields, to which I happily obliged.
I suppose for the sake of making this post worth anything, I should probably explain what exactly arbitration is anyways. Simply put, it is a private judicial process. Say you and I are two business people, and we don't want to go to court, because going to court is costly and time consuming. So in our contract, we insert an arbitration clause. This means that if we have a dispute, we have waived our legal right to go to court. Rather, we will enlist a group like the LCIA (or more likely in America, the American Arbitration Association), to help us choose an arbitral tribunal, and figure out how to run our proceeding. We'll present our cases, just like in court, and the arbitrator will make a ruling. However, unlike a court, there is no right to appeal that decision. Barring some exceptional circumstances, the arbitrator's decision is absolute and final.
The idea is that arbitration is more cost-effective and efficient than litigation, and the U.S. has an emphatic policy towards encouraging arbitration in practically every setting. Unless it is a criminal case, chances are any dispute can be arbitrated. If you have a credit card, you've agreed to arbitrate.
Any questions?
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