Lloyd's Maritime and Commercial Law Quarterly
CHOICE OF REMEDIES AND A TALE OF TWO CITIES
Nicholas Poon*
PT First Media v Astro
There are not many judicial decisions which, before their release, can be said to be highly anticipated by the international commercial arbitration community. The Singapore Court of Appeal’s decision in PT First Media (formerly known as PT Broadband Multimedia TBK) v Astro Nusantara International BV and others and another appeal (“Astro”)1 is undoubtedly one of those. The decision has spawned more than a handful of updates and commentaries. As one would expect from any highly anticipated decision, not everyone seems to agree with the outcome. Fortunately or unfortunately, Astro has and will continue to generate much debate in many other areas in international commercial arbitration, much as Dallah Real Estate and Tourism Holding Co v Ministry of Religious Affairs of the Government of Pakistan
2 (“Dallah”) did.
This note focuses only on the narrow issue of the court’s powers to refuse enforcement of a domestic international award3 on the same jurisdictional ground that was rejected by
1. [2013] SGCA 57.
2. [2010] UKSC 46; [2011] 1 AC 763.
3. This is defined as an award in international commercial arbitration that is made in the same territory as the forum in which recognition and enforcement is sought: see Astro, [16].
CASE AND COMMENT
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