Companies are forking out more money on hiring in-house lawyers to tackle a rise in international disputes, according to research by PwC.
Some 35% of in-house counsel polled by the Big Four professional services firm reported a rise in the number of international disputes involving their organisation. And when they were asked which method they would choose to resolve their disputes, twice as many opted for international arbitration than other forms, such as litigation.
Meanwhile, the current constraints of the economic climate mean that companies are moving away from using expensive external law firms and employing in-house legal experts instead.
Interestingly, while 73% of respondents thought arbitration was well suited to solving international disputes, 82% of those working in financial servicers ranked court litigation as their top method for settling disagreements. This is despite more than two-thirds of in-house counsel in financial services organisations believing that international arbitration is more effective at resolving disputes than litigation.
Gerry Lagerberg, PwC’s head of international arbitration, said: “The role that third-party funding plays will be another area to watch in the future as smaller firms may well need to secure financial back-up before commencing proceedings or at the enforcement stage.”
Sally Percy is editor of The Treasurer