Resolution of international commercial disputes by expedited arbitration

Over time, arbitration lost its characteristic for being a speedy and affordable dispute resolution method. Hereupon, numerous arbitration centers have adopted rules that include a different procedure for disputes that are relatively lower in monetary value and/or are less complex and/or requires a certain level of urgency that allows the arbitral proceedings to be fulfilled in a speedier and more affordable fashion that are referred to as expedited or fast-track procedures. Essentially, arbitration rules always included measures to make proceedings faster and more affordable. However, since the application of such measures was not always possible due to various reasons the need to adopt expedited rules occurred as a necessity. Expedited rules (with that name) were first seen in 1990s and become widely accepted in 2010s. In this study, the historical development of expedited arbitration rules, which procedural measures are taken with the aim to make the arbitral proceedings speedier and more affordable and which disputes shall be subject to expedited arbitration will be examined.