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Institutional Comparison
ICC, SIAC, and LCIA are
excellent institutions.
They are also incomplete.
The world's leading arbitration institutions were designed for a different era. They are excellent at producing awards. None of them is designed to prevent disputes before they arise, review awards for enforceability before they are issued, or provide institutional support after the award. UNIONE™ was built to close those gaps - not to replace them, but to go further.
ICC founded
1923
SIAC founded
1991
LCIA founded
1892
UNIONE™ - built for
this century
Side by Side
The complete institutional scorecard.
Every material dimension across which arbitration institutions can be compared — assessed honestly and specifically. Gold cells indicate the strongest position on each dimension.
| Feature | Description | ICC | SIAC | LCIA | UNIONE™ | UNIONE™ — Detail |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 — Before the Dispute | ||||||
| Contract-stage engagement | Institution engages before any dispute arises | — | — | — | ✓ | Prevention PhaseFour-stage system begins at contract signing. Dispute management is embedded before any dispute exists - Stage 01 of the UNIONE™ framework. |
| Dispute Prevention Certificate | Pre-dispute institutional certification | — | — | — | ✓ | DPC - World First. The only institutional pre-dispute certification. Six checkpoints. Standing Neutral from day one. No equivalent exists at any other institution. |
| Dispute Risk Assessment | Structured pre-dispute risk analysis | — | — | — | ✓ | Dispute Risk Analyser. AI-powered 5-factor scoring: dispute strength, evidence quality and enforcement prospects. Live tool, available now. |
| Standing Neutral | Appointed neutral available from contract stage | — | — | — | ✓ | Included with DPC. Standing Neutral appointed from day one as part of the DPC framework. Suited to JVs, infrastructure projects, and long-term supply relationships. |
| Structured resolution before arbitration | Mediation, neutral evaluation, senior negotiation | Optional | Optional | Optional | ✓ | Stage 02 - Built In Prevention Phase (Arts. 8–12): structured negotiation, facilitated mediation, neutral evaluation conducted within 30 days before arbitration commences. |
| 02 — The Arbitration Proceedings | ||||||
| Award timeline | Typical duration, by track | 12–20 months | 12–18 months | 14–24 months | ✓ | Three structured tracks: SME Access (≤$1M): 60-day award; Expedited (≤$10M): 90–120 days; Standard (> $10M): 120–180 days (Art. 39). |
| Cost-certainty commitment | Written pledge on fees at registration | — | — | — | ✓ | Cost-Certainty Pledge. Written cost estimate at registration. Transparent, published, proportionate fee schedule (Art. 53). |
| Tribunal constituted within 21 days | Time-bound appointment from vetted panel | ~30–60 days | ~30 days | ~30 days | ✓ | Institution uses reasonable endeavours to constitute the Tribunal within 21 days after expiry of the response period (Art. 14). |
| Emergency Arbitrator | Urgent interim relief before tribunal constitution | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | 48-hour appointment. Emergency Arbitrator appointed within 24 hours of valid application; decision issued within 3 days (Art. 31A). Binding unless modified by the Tribunal. |
| AI evidence protocol in Rules | Codified rules for AI-generated evidence | — | — | — | ✓ | Rules v3.0 · Art. 28. First AI evidence framework codified in institutional arbitration rules. |
| Virtual & hybrid hearings | Full legal equivalence, natively supported | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Virtual-native. Electronic filings, digital communications, and virtual/hybrid hearings carry full legal validity under Art. 4(h). Digital-first case management platform (Art. 52). Hearing Intelligence AI available. |
| Third-party funding disclosure | Obligation to disclose funders | Partial | ✓ | Partial | ✓ | Tribunal has broad power to order disclosure of any matter affecting the proceedings (Art. 23). Good faith conduct obligations apply to all participants (Art. 4(j)). |
| 03 — After the Award — Enforcement | ||||||
| Pre-award enforceability review | Institutional review of draft award before issuance | Scrutiny (form only) | — | — | ✓ | Enforcement Readiness Review. Every draft award reviewed before finalisation (Art. 42). Assesses procedural compliance, document clarity, and enforceability risk under the NYC 1958 in identified jurisdictions. |
| Enforceability Certificate | Formal certificate issued with every award | — | — | — | ✓ | Jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction enforceability assessment issued alongside every final award (Art. 43). Rated: High, Standard, or Jurisdiction-Specific. |
| Post-award compliance monitoring | Institutional record of award satisfaction | — | — | — | ✓ | Compliance Certificate. UNIONE™ issues a Compliance Certificate or Non-Compliance Record after the award for use in enforcement proceedings. |
| Post-award enforcement support | Local counsel, certified copies, jurisdiction strategy | — | — | — | ✓ | Stage 04 support. Enforcement strategy guidance, local counsel coordination, and supplementary certification for enforcement proceedings (Art. 47). 170+ jurisdiction coverage under the New York Convention. |
| 04 — Technology & AI | ||||||
| AI Clause Generator | Generate optimised arbitration clauses instantly | — | — | — | ✓ | Live tool. Jurisdiction-optimised UNIONE™ clauses in seconds. 8 presets across 6 categories. Calibrated to Rules v3.0. |
| Document Review Intelligence | AI analysis for gaps, risks, inconsistencies | — | — | — | ✓ | Live AI-assisted analysis of arbitration documents: inconsistencies, gaps, and risk flags. DPC-specific review also available, calibrated to DPC Standard v1.0. |
| Hearing Intelligence | Live transcription and AI issue flagging | — | — | — | ✓ | Live real-time transcription, issue flagging, and session summaries during hearings. Native to the UNIONE™ virtual hearing platform. |
| Enforceability Predictor | Pre-filing jurisdiction enforceability mapping | — | — | — | ✓ | Live AI-powered jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction enforcement mapping before a case is filed. 170+ jurisdictions. |
| 05 — Institutional Transparency | ||||||
| Annual performance data | Case stats, durations, outcomes published | Statistics Report | ✓ | Limited | ✓ | Annual Institutional Report with case statistics, average durations by track, award delivery rates, and anonymised arbitrator performance metrics. |
| Arbitrator performance metrics | Anonymised published data for panel members | — | — | — | ✓ | Published annually in the Annual Institutional Report. |
| Published Rules — free access | Full institutional rules publicly available | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Rules v3.0 - 61 Articles. Full rules publicly available. Six Parts covering the arbitration lifecycle from preliminary provisions through final award and enforcement. NYC aligned. |
The Specific Gaps
Eight things ICC, SIAC, and LCIA
do not currently provide.
These are not aspirational features. They are specific, codified services with named articles in UNIONE™ Rules v3.0, available in every case from day one.
01
Enforcement Readiness Review
Before any UNIONE™ award is finalised, UNIONE™'s Award Review Panel reviews it — not on the merits, but for procedural integrity, legal robustness, and enforceability risk across identified enforcement jurisdictions. ICC conducts a scrutiny of awards, but it is limited to form. No institution reviews awards for enforcement risk before they are issued. UNIONE™ does.
02
Enforceability Certificate
After the ERR, every UNIONE™ award is accompanied by a formal Enforceability Certificate rated High, Standard, or Jurisdiction-Specific Considerations — with specific enforcement jurisdictions assessed and noted. This certificate is admissible in enforcement proceedings as institutional evidence of procedural integrity. No other institution has ever issued anything equivalent.
03
Contract-Stage Engagement
ICC, SIAC, and LCIA have no institutional service for parties at the contract stage. Their involvement begins when a Notice of Arbitration is filed. UNIONE™'s Transaction Lifecycle Framework begins before any dispute exists — with clause design, dispute risk assessment, DPC registration, and standing neutral appointment.
04
Cost-Certainty Pledge
ICC, SIAC, and LCIA provide fee schedules. None of them commits in writing not to materially exceed an initial cost estimate. UNIONE™ does. At registration, UNIONE™ provides a written Cost-Certainty Estimate and commits not to exceed it by more than 20% without prior notice and acknowledgement.
05
AI Evidence Protocol
AI-generated evidence is already appearing in international arbitration proceedings. None of the major institutions has codified specific rules for its authentication, disclosure, or weight. UNIONE™ Rules v3.0 Article 28 codifies the first AI evidence framework in any institution's arbitration rules.
06
Post-Award Compliance Monitoring
All three legacy institutions close their files when the award is delivered. UNIONE™ offers Post-Award Compliance Monitoring — a 90-day service that maintains a formal institutional record of award compliance, issues a Compliance Certificate on satisfaction, and issues a Non-Compliance Record on failure.
07
Enforcement Cooperation Clause
None of the major institutions embed an enforcement cooperation obligation directly into their Rules — making parties contractually liable for bad-faith resistance to enforcement. UNIONE™ Rules v3.0 Article 38 requires every party to take all reasonable steps to facilitate enforcement, and makes bad-faith resistance to enforcement a costs liability.
08
Institutional Performance Transparency
ICC, SIAC, and LCIA publish statistics reports. None publishes arbitrator performance metrics, award delivery compliance rates, or ERR distribution data. UNIONE™ publishes all of these. Trust in an institution should be built on data, not on age.
Cost & Time
The commercial reality of
legacy arbitration.
Cost and duration are not secondary considerations. They are the primary reason mid-market parties avoid international arbitration entirely — and choose worse alternatives.
✦ The UNIONE™ Cost-Certainty Pledge
At registration, UNIONE™ issues a written Cost-Certainty Estimate covering all institutional fees. UNIONE™ commits not to exceed this estimate by more than 20% without prior written notice and acknowledgement from the parties. No other institution makes this commitment.
The SME Access Protocol
60-day award timeline · Capped fees · Dedicated case manager. The mid-market — the largest underserved segment in international arbitration — has a system designed for it.
Why LCIA costs are highest
LCIA bills arbitrators on an hourly-rate model. A three-arbitrator panel on a complex dispute at £450–£600/hour each, over 18–24 months, produces costs that are structurally impossible to predict or cap. UNIONE™ does not permit open-ended time-based billing for institutional fee components.
The Gap That Matters Most
An award that cannot be enforced
is not a resolution. It is a document.
The enforcement gap is the most consequential unsolved problem in international arbitration. ICC, SIAC, and LCIA produce excellent awards. None of them takes institutional responsibility for what happens after.
🏁
ICC / SIAC / LCIA: The process ends here
Award is issued. File is closed. The winning party is on their own — navigating enforcement in jurisdictions they may not know, with an award whose enforceability profile the institution has not assessed.
🔍
UNIONE™: Enforcement Readiness Review
Before the award is issued, UNIONE™'s Award Review Panel reviews it — examining procedural integrity, legal robustness, and enforceability risk in the identified enforcement jurisdictions.
✦
UNIONE™: Enforceability Certificate issued
Every award is accompanied by an institutional Enforceability Certificate — rated High, Standard, or Jurisdiction-Specific. Admissible in enforcement proceedings as evidence of procedural integrity.
📋
UNIONE™: Post-Award Compliance Monitoring
90-day institutional monitoring. If the award is satisfied — Compliance Certificate. If it is not — a Non-Compliance Record, admissible in enforcement proceedings.
UNIONE™ Enforceability Certificate
Issued with every UNIONE™ award following the ERR
No other institution provides this.
ICC, SIAC, and LCIA do not issue enforceability certificates. They do not conduct post-award compliance monitoring. They do not provide enforcement support services. UNIONE™ is the only institution that treats enforcement as an institutional responsibility, not a party's problem.
Decision Guide
Who should choose which institution.
A direct and honest assessment. ICC, SIAC, and LCIA are excellent institutions. The choice depends on what you specifically need.
Choose if you need
ICC
- The most globally recognised institutional name — where the counterparty's country will respond to that name specifically
- French law as governing law and Paris as the natural seat
- Very large, complex, multi-jurisdictional disputes with significant political sensitivity
- The ICC scrutiny process for your award (though limited to form, not enforcement)
Choose if you need
SIAC
- Asia-Pacific disputes where Singapore is the natural seat and counterparty familiarity with SIAC is strong
- The 2025 SIAC Rules and Singapore's established arbitration-friendly legal framework
- A well-tested expedited procedure for disputes under USD 6 million
- Strong panel across construction, shipping, energy, and technology sectors in Asia
Choose if you need
UNIONE™
- An award that comes with an Enforceability Certificate — particularly where enforcement jurisdiction is uncertain or contested
- A mid-market or SME dispute that the major institutions do not serve well
- A long-term relationship where prevention matters — JV, infrastructure, supply chain
- Cost certainty from day one — with a written pledge not to exceed the initial estimate by more than 20%
- The most current rules — AI evidence protocol, enforcement cooperation clause, performance transparency
ICC and SIAC and LCIA
built the foundations.
UNIONE™ built what comes next.
built the foundations.
UNIONE™ built what comes next.
The question is not which institution has the longest history. The question is which institution is designed for the way global commerce works today — and will work tomorrow. UNIONE™ is the only institution that begins at the contract, continues through proceedings, and does not stop at the award.
8
Structural gaps addressed that no other institution currently fills — all codified in UNIONE™ Rules v3.0
✦
Only institution with an Enforceability Certificate on every award — issued after a mandatory pre-finalisation review
170+
Jurisdictions assessed in the ERR and Enforceability Predictor tool before any case is filed
0
Legacy institutions with a cost-certainty pledge — UNIONE™ is the only institution that commits not to exceed its initial estimate by more than 20%
Next Step
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