UNIS/L/107
21 December 2006
The Bahamas and Gabon Accede to United Nations Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards
140th and 141st countries to become party to the Convention
VIENNA, 21 December (UN Information Service) - With their accession to the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (also commonly known as the "New York" Convention), Gabon and the Bahamas have become the 140th and 141st States Parties to the Convention. The Convention will enter into force for Gabon on 15 March 2007 and for the Bahamas on 20 March 2007.
The "New York" Convention is widely recognized as a foundation instrument of international arbitration and requires courts of contracting States to give effect to an agreement to arbitrate when seized of an action in a matter covered by an arbitration agreement and to recognize and enforce awards made in other States, subject to specific limited exceptions.
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The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) is the core legal body of the United Nations system in the field of international trade law. Its mandate is to remove legal obstacles to international trade by progressively modernizing and harmonizing trade law. It prepares legal texts in a number of key areas such as international commercial dispute settlement, electronic commerce, insolvency, international payments, sale of goods, transport law, procurement and infrastructure development. UNCITRAL also provides technical assistance to law reform activities, including assisting Member States to review and assess their law reform needs and to draft the legislation required to implement UNCITRAL texts. The UNCITRAL Secretariat is located in Vienna, Austria, and maintains a website at www.uncitral.org.
For information contact:
Jenny
Clift
Senior Legal Officer
UNCITRAL Secretariat
E-mail:
jenny.clift@uncitral.org
