by Gladwin Issac, Associate, S&R Associates, Mumbai, India

Paul Tan, Member of the Events Team of Rising Arbitrators Initiative (RAI)’s Executive Committee and Partner at Cavenagh Law (Clifford Chance Asia) in Singapore interviews Nikolaus Pitkowitz, Vice-President of the Vienna International Arbitration Center in the seventh episode of the RAI’s “Interview the Institution” Series.

In this brief chat with Paul, Nikolaus reflects on VIAC’s significance as a regional hub of arbitration in Central and Eastern Europe, located in the heart of the continent and sheds light on the various factors considered by the VIAC Secretary General for appointment of arbitrators under the VIAC Arbitration Rules. He discusses the latest arbitrator appointment trends at VIAC, highlighting the Center’s growing commitment to promote regional and gender diversity in the field. Nikolaus then notes the importance of various support initiatives run by the Center in promoting and attracting talent in arbitration and how younger arbitration practitioners can put these exposures to good use to excel in this competitive field. Lastly, he offers very useful advice to rising arbitrators on how to increase their “visibility” in the market and how to demonstrate their expertise availability to be eventually considered for a role by VIAC and other arbitral institutions.

Watch the full recording of the interview on the RAI website available here.