Revue - Les Cahiers de l'Arbitrage N°1-2023 - 236

BOOK REVIEW
Alexis Mourre - Legacy and personal reflections
Peppered throughout the diverse and valuable contributions in this book are
observations on Alexis Mourre's hallmark changes within the ICC in particular, and
international arbitration more generally.
Upon taking office in 2015, he immediately doubled the number of female vice
presidents in the ICC Court and implemented the communication of reasons for
ICC Court decisions. In 2016, for the first time in the Court's history, he included
figures on the gender balance in ICC tribunals in its annual statistics. Also in
2016, he made changes to improve the transparency of the timing and progress of
scrutiny of awards, and pushed the Court to issue detailed guidance on arbitrator
disclosures. In 2018, he pushed for the publication of awards to be the default rule
unless parties opt out.
These achievements offer a real and tangible stocktake of Mourre's contributions
in making good on his vision for a better system of international arbitration.
Beyond these achievements, the book also sketches Mourre as a leader, friend,
and colleague, including a range of touching personal anecdotes about Mourre
and his family. These come from Vera van Houtte, Samaa A. Haridi, Gabrielle
Kaufmann-Kohler, David Arias, Guido S. Tawil, Loretta Malintoppi, Eduardo Silva
Romero, Valentine Chessa, Charles Kaplan, Julie Bédard, Yas Banifatemi, Carita
Wallgren-Lindholm, Pierre Bienvenu Ad. E., Christopher R. Seppälä, Andrés Jana,
Mingchao Fan, Justin D'Agostino MH, Ana Serra e Moura, Valeria Galíndez,
and Judith Gill KC. The breadth and diversity of contributors here is a poignant
illustration of the impact Mourre has made within the international arbitration
community, and the strength of his connection to others.
Memorably, these personal anecdotes include an account of Mourre's literary
pursuits, and of his horseplay with his daughter. Christopher R. Seppälä notes his
cultural independence, stating that Mourre is " quite independent culturally of any
one country " . 27
Deva Villanúa emphasises this observation, describing Mourre as:
" the most French of the Latinos, or the most Latino of the French - to this day I do
not know where to place him " . 28
Mingchao Fan reflects on Mourre's honourable decision to apply the two-term
rule to himself as President of the ICC Court. And in a fitting reflection of Mourre's
tenacity, Carita Wallgren-Lindholm's personal reflection reveals his favourite
animal: the shark.
Conclusion
Taken together, these compelling chapters give us a text exploring the legitimacy
of international arbitration through the example and legacy of one person: Alexis
Mourre.
27. Christopher R. Seppälä, " Personal reflection | Intellectual and cultural independence " , p. 304.
28. Deva Villanúa and Edward Thorn, " Improving arbitration deliberations and awards " , p. 302.
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The Paris Journal of International Arbitration 2023‑1

Revue - Les Cahiers de l'Arbitrage N°1-2023

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