Yemen’s Ratification of the New York Convention: An Analysis of Compatibility and the Uniform Interpretation of Articles V(1)(a) and V(2)(b)

The United Nations Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, also known as the New York Convention, is the backbone of the universal mechanism for the enforcement system of foreign arbitral awards. Despite its universal success, Yemen has yet to ratify the Convention. Although Yemen is introducing new legislation on international arbitration, this legislation fails to provide clear guidance on the grounds for refusal of enforcement of foreign arbitral awards, unlike those listed in Article V of the New York Convention, which constitutes the core of the Convention. This thesis aims to examine the grounds of invalidity of arbitration agreements, and the public policy violation embodied in Articles V(1)(a) and V(2)(b) of the Convention. It adopts doctrinal and functional comparative approaches that comprise theoretical discussion and interpretation, as well as application by the courts of contracting States- paying particular attention to English legal practice. This thesis then also critically analyses the corresponding provisions under the new Yemeni legislation. Through a careful comparative analysis, the thesis also seeks to evaluate the degree of compatibility between the grounds’ applications and the relevant principles in operation in Yemen, which are derivative from Islamic Shari 'ah law. The thesis finds that the new Yemen’s legislation on international arbitration has several shortcomings regarding the specific areas of the study, and it makes a set of recommendations for legislative improvement. Moreover, the thesis demonstrates how the Convention is compatible with Shari’ah principles, thereby showing that there are no considerable barriers to its ratification by Yemen. Ultimately, in order to rectify the shortcomings in Yemen’s impending legislation on international arbitration, it is recommended that the Yemeni government considers ratifying the New York Convention. This progressive step will help Yemen adopt a pro-enforcement policy towards foreign arbitral awards and establish Yemen as an arbitration-friendly jurisdiction.