New data shows growth of arbitration in Saudi Arabia and local judiciary support

Following the publication by Global Arbitration Review (GAR) of its latest report on arbitration in the Middle East and Africa (9-page / 284KB PDF), construction disputes specialist Rena L. Scott of Pinsent Masons commented on the growing caseload of the Saudi Center for Commercial Arbitration (SCCA).

“The growth in cases filed before the SCCA over the last year, up to 120 new cases from 92 in the previous year, is encouraging to see and appears to reflect growing user confidence in resolving disputes in the Kingdom,” Scott said.

According to the report, of the 120 new cases, 73 were arbitration cases – 27 more than were filed the previous year. The increase in arbitration cases filed before the SCCA over the last year represents a continuation of a trend that developed over the previous three years, where growth in the institution’s arbitration case load increased 50%, 66.7%, and 84%, respectively. 

Disputes in the construction and engineering sector are the most common kind of cases that the SCCA handles, making up 38% of its case load last year. Businesses from across 29 different countries were parties to cases before the SCCA in 2024.

The speed at which disputes are being resolved by the SCCA was also addressed in the report: arbitrations with a total sum in dispute exceeding $304 million were “disposed of” on average in less than six months, while the longest time it took the SCCA to make an award in an arbitration case that ended in 2024 was just under 14 months.

The report highlighted how the SCCA modernised its rules for commercial arbitration in 2023 to “emphasise the use of technology to streamline procedures, reduce the environmental impact, and enhance process efficiency”, and it cited governance changes at the SCCA that have provided for a more diverse board of directors, enhanced independence in the decision making of SCCA arbitral tribunals, and the operation of a new SCCA Court to rule on administrative matters relevant to cases before an SCCA arbitral tribunal.

The authors of the KSA chapter noted: “By the time this text was prepared. the SCCA Court disposed of 323 matters since its inception in May 2023. The top five matters include the fixing of the advance deposit (89), the confirmation of arbitrator nominations (73; with only one rejection), the review of arbitral awards (52), the direct appointment of arbitrators (47), and the final fixing of fees and expenses (36).”

“In addition, the SCCA Court has published its Internal Rules of the SCCA Court, a step that was heralded as a welcome initiative to promote transparency and trust in the decision-making process. By introducing the SCCA Court, the SCCA has delivered on its promise to safeguard consistency and continuity in making key administrative decisions free of any internal or external influences,” it added.

The report further highlighted how the KSA judicial system has underpinned the growing arbitration market in the country. For example, in 2023, the KSA appeal courts only annulled awards made in arbitration in 7.2% of cases. Of those successful motions to annul, only four (2.6%) succeeded on public policy grounds and none were based on Shari’ah principles beyond those provided for in Article 50(1) of the KSA Arbitration Law 2012.

“GAR’s latest report should put to rest any doubts about the future of international arbitration in the Kingdom,” said Scott. “The SCCA, the KSA courts, and all of the institutions contributing to the success of alternative dispute resolution in Saudi Arabia, have risen to the challenge of demonstrating the sincerity of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 transformation initiative. Whereas in years past there may have been doubts, the most recent data makes clear that parties should feel comfortable not only doing business in the Kingdom, but also resolving their disputes here too.”