Key figures shed light on investment role of AIFC Court and IAC in Kazakhstan
Panel discussions were held at the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) Court and International Arbitration Centre (IAC) with distinguished speakers such as Mr. Thomas Krümmel, IAC Chairman, and the Rt. Hon. The Lord Burnett of Maldon, Chief Justice of the AIFC Court. In order to encourage investment to Kazakhstan, the seminars were aimed to clarify the crucial roles played by the AIFC Court and IAC in the commercial judicial practices in Kazakhstan, Kazinform News Agency correspondent reports.
Distinguished members of the IAC Panel of Arbitrators, including Gulnur Nurkeyeva, Managing Partner and Head of the China Office at GRATA International, Sergey Vataev, a distinguished member of the IAC Panel of Arbitrators, and Bakhyt Tukulov, Managing Partner at Tukulov Kassilgov Shaikenov Disputes, were among the speakers.
Kazinform News Agency correspondent learned the opinion of one of the speakers about the peculiarities of the AIFC Court and the IAC, Gulnur Nurkeyeva emphasized that for her and her clients the main feature is a guarantee of justice for the investment attractiveness of Kazakhstan and the impartiality of the court:
“The investor knows that he will build a road here, a kindergarten or a hospital will be built, if he has any dispute, then he can count on justice. (...) I think it is a huge achievement of Kazakhstan and the justice system in general that these judges agreed, and they are here, and really administer justice. They value their reputation so much that there is no partiality there, that the government will tell them to act one way or another, or someone else will influence them and tell them to protect their interests. Here we can clearly speak about the impartiality and independence of judges.”
With Christopher Campbell-Holt, Registrar and Chief Executive of the AIFC Court and IAC, serving as moderator, the panel discussed the nuances of the functioning of the AIFC Court and IAC, with a special emphasis on the regulations that govern them. Attendees of the seminars were given the chance to learn about the procedural features of the AIFC Court and IAC, such as the claim filing procedure and the course of a normal case from the beginning to the end. The functioning of the Court was thoroughly detailed by Mr. Campbell-Holt in a recent interview with a Kazinform News Agency correspondent.
More than 2,600 cases, representing investors from 28 countries and covering a variety of economic sectors, have been satisfactorily settled by the AIFC Court and IAC since January 1, 2018. Its attraction to investors from a variety of regions—including important economic partners for Kazakhstan like China, the United Arab Emirates, and India—is noteworthy. The Court's impact spans 34 jurisdictions and six continents, with 618 solicitors representing 30 countries. They operate from premises in Astana and Almaty and have hearing chambers in eight Eurasian nations, including Armenia and Türkiye, with the latest AIFC Court and IACs office launch in Beijing.
