The following article is a print version of a lecture delivered by Professor Jan Paulsson in Hong Kong in April 2013. In this lecture, Professor Paulsson observes that it may seem paradoxical that the legal systems that have the best courts are the most likely to defer to arbitration, while those whose courts are riddled with incompetence and arbitrariness tend to insist on imposing them on the populace. Still, it would be a mistake to think that arbitration could ever function for long as an enclave of superiority. The ideal of complementarity is attained through constant, tireless and respectful dialogue.
Journal of International Arbitration