Who can be appointed under a clause which provides that the arbitrators shall be “commercial men”?
“Commercial men” has been interpreted by the U.S. Maritime Law Association (the U.S. maritime bar) as meaning “commercial persons”, regardless of gender. In a recent court decision in New York, the State’s highest Federal court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, interpreted commercial persons to mean individuals who have substantial, practical, commercial experience and who work or have worked for commercial ventures. According to the Court, a lawyer whose only experience has been the practice of commercial law, does not qualify as a commercial person. Arbitration clauses in some Charter Parties provide that the Chairman shall be an Admiralty attorney.
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