Academic Publications
Books
Springer, 2023, 186 pages
About this book
Arbitration is facing revolutionary changes due to new technologies’ irruption into the entire arbitration proceeding. Wide-ranging technical-legal concepts such as e-discovery, e-hearing, cyber-security protocol, e-deliberations, algorithmic decision-making and digital signing have become part of life. Technology’s impact on arbitration is unlikely to decrease after the COVID crisis; on the contrary, how the arbitration community positions itself vis-à-vis technology will be a key factor in determining arbitration’s future. Faced with this challenging scenario, the book discusses a novel legal topic: arbitrators’ relationship with this increasingly ubiquitous, rapidly-changing technology.
This innovative book applies journalism’s “5 W questions” to the underexplored issue of arbitrators’ digital competence. It reaches a workable definition of what digital competence in the current arbitration context is, also providing answers to the essential question of why arbitrators’ digital competence is relevant from legal and financial points of view. Attention then shifts to who, with reflections on arbitrators working in a highly technological context and clarification of their relationship with other legal and non-legal actors. The book equally offers an in-depth comparative study of the question of where arbitrators’ technological competence is regulated, with critical analysis of soft and hard law provisions that may impose a digital competence duty. Finally, the book specifies when arbitrators need to be digitally competent and develops legal proposals regarding key procedural stages (initial conference, hearings) and legal topics (cybersecurity, data protection).
The first study to scrutinise the rapidly changing relationship between arbitrators and technology, the book aims to spark a crucial debate among practitioners and scholars. Academically rigorous and using the latest legal material, it emphasises arbitrators’ needs, rights and duties in our technological age, presenting them alongside carefully selected practical topics. The unprecedented and well-grounded proposals for arbitrators’ digital competence are intended to be a call to action for its broad target audience.
Reviews
“Fach Gómez’s monograph is an important and much-needed contribution—as the fields of technology and arbitration rapidly converge, the industry will need guidance in navigating this new intersection smoothly. The rapid evolution of technology is not only transforming how the arbitral process is conducted and managed but also reshaping the expectations and demands of parties to arbitrations. … Her work will serve as a crucial guide for arbitrators, legal professionals and institutions wishing to remain at the forefront of their field.” (Elizabeth Chan and Aija Lejniece, ICSID Review, Vol. 39 (2), 2024).
“The book is a timely and holistic review of the relationship between arbitrators and technological competence. … the book serves as a good catalyst to ‘spark a debate among arbitration stakeholders on the suitability of incorporating an arbitrator duty of technological competence into texts concerning ethics such as codes of conduct and professional rules.’” (Pijan Wu, Contemporary Asia Arbitration Journal, Vol. 17 (1), 2024).
“Remarkably well-researched yet accessible, the monograph is an easy read, succinct, and free of technical or computer science jargon. It addresses numerous fundamental questions for legal professionals and goes further to envision the future of the practice. The work reveals an emerging new field, not just in arbitration but in the broader legal industry, posing several thought-provoking questions for future research. It serves as an excellent starting point for those interested in the evolving relationship between legal practice and technology.” (Ali Dehdashti, International Review of Law, Computers & Technology, March 4, 2024).
“A comparative and international Legal Study, by Katia Fach Gómez, is an ambitious little book, with a jaw-dropping encyclopedic summary of the relevant literature … . It fills a gap in the literature and provides a practical, lively and well-documented pathway for future research and scholarship in the area. … It is strongly recommended, for arbitrators both young and old.” (Clifford J. Hendel, Iurgium – Revista del Club Español e Iberoamericano del Arbitraje, Issue 49, 2024).
“Fach Gómez has produced an impressive work of scholarship that synthesizes institutional rules, commentary, and arbitral and judicial decisions into a practical and thought-provoking guide on the technological competencies necessary in arbitration. … Fach Gómez’s book is an essential acknowledgement that arbitration is now done by technological means and, by necessary implication, that it is the duty of arbitrators and practitioners to be competent in those means.” (R. Matthew Burke, New York Dispute Resolution Lawyer, Vol. 17 (1), 2024).
“There is no doubt about the ever-growing importance of technology in international arbitration. … What then is required of arbitrators to effectively perform their duties in this technological landscape? … This well-researcher book reflects a comprehensive approach to question how we think about this issue now and how it can be clarified in the future. … this book concludes that arbitrators must be technologically competent, and provides a thoughtful analysis of how such a duty could be implemented.” (Colleen Parker Bacquet, ICC Dispute Resolution Bulletin, Issue 1, 2024).
‘The Technological Competence of Arbitrators’ is a seminal book for arbitrators, legal practitioners, scholars, and students. Its comprehensive examination of the digital competencies required in the contemporary arbitration landscape serves as a call to action and a foundational resource for those navigating this evolving field. The book fills a significant gap in arbitration scholarship and prompts a crucial dialogue on the future intersection of technology and legal practice. As arbitration continues to adapt to the demands of the digital age, Fach Gómez’s work will undoubtedly remain a key reference point for ongoing discussions and developments in the field (Charles Ho Wang Mak, Asian Arbitration International Journal, 2025).
“The book is set to provide a useful starting point in this emerging field for academics, practitioners and parties to arbitrations. Importantly, in addition to serving as a stark reminder of the relevance of technology in arbitration, the book also suggests a reasonable benchmark for arbitration users’ expectations of arbitrators in terms of their technological competence. Fach Gómez’s work promises to be a reference point in this area of dispute settlement for the foreseeable future (Helin Laufer, Cambridge International Law Journal, Vol. 14 No. 1, 2025).
“Les arbitres no sont pas suffisamment conscients de leurs devoirs en la matière, de leur responsabilité et de leur vulnérabilite- En attirant leur attention sur les dangers qu´ils courent et sur les moyens de se proteger, ce libre leur est de la plus grande utilité”. (Yves Derains, Revue de l´arbitrage 2024).
“Esta obra resulta notoriamente útil para todo aquel que esté relacionado con el mundo del arbitraje y requiera orientación sobre el uso de tecnologías en procesos arbitrales. La variedad de fuentes utilizadas en la obra y la cercanía desde la cual está escrita facilita un acercamiento íntegro al tema, permitiendo apreciar sus límites y contornos…Para que los profesionales del arbitraje estemos a la altura para afrontar estos desafíos deberíamos partir por familiarizarnos con el trabajo de la profesora Katia Fach” (Elina Mereminskaya. Arbitraje. Temas de actualidad. 2025).
