Leaning into Efficiency and Flexibility: The 2026 ICC Arbitration Rules

Executive Summary

• The revised International Chamber of Commerce (“ICC”) Rules of Arbitration came into force on 1 June 2026. Covington colleagues, Marney Cheek, a member of the ICC Commission on Arbitration and Arbitration in ADR, together with Jeremy Wilson, William Lowery and Juliette Huard-Bourgois have been tracking these revisions. They highlight how the 2026 ICC Rules respond to the practical demands of contemporary international arbitration and aim to enhance procedural efficiency by modernizing tribunals’ case management powers.
• Among these changes is the removal of mandatory Terms of Reference (“ToR”), shifting greater procedural significance to the Case Management Conference (“CMC”), which now operates as the key milestone for defining the scope and timetable of proceedings from the outset.
• In parallel, the 2026 ICC Rules introduce a new form of fast-track arbitration: an opt-in Highly Expedited Arbitration will enable parties to obtain a final enforceable award within three months for disputes requiring swift but final resolution beyond interim relief.
• The 2026 ICC Rules also strengthen tribunal and institutional powers. New provisions formalize early determination of manifestly unmeritorious claims or defences, expand emergency arbitration (including the ability to grant ex parte preliminary relief), and clarify the role of the ICC President in assessing prima facie jurisdiction.
• Further refinements address arbitrator disclosure, codifying existing practice, and introducing clearer guidance designed to minimize late‑stage challenges. The updated rules also address joinder of parties, easing the process of resolving multi-party disputes.

Parties with pre-existing ICC arbitration clauses in their contracts who commence arbitration after 1 June 2026 will be subject to the new 2026 ICC Rules even where their arbitration clauses pre-dates 1 June 2026, unless these clauses expressly designated an earlier version of the rules.

The 2026 ICC Rules do not affect the standard of disclosure set out at Article 12(2) that has long pervaded ICC Arbitration, requiring arbitrators to disclose in writing to the Secretariat any facts or circumstances “which might be of such a nature as to call into question the arbitrator’s independence in the eyes of the parties, as well as any circumstances that could give rise to reasonable doubts as to the arbitrator’s impartiality”. However, with the 2026 ICC Rules, arbitrator disclosure now benefits from two new clarifications, codified from the 2020 Note to Parties. First, new Article 12(2) now clearly outlines that any “doubts the prospective arbitrator may have about whether to make a disclosure shall be resolved in favour of disclosure”. Second, new Article 12(4) articulates what has generally been observed historically by the ICC Court, that “[a] disclosure does not, by itself, establish a lack of independence or impartiality.” This new provision will reassure prospective arbitrators that disclosure is not, in itself, an admission of conflict.

Complementing these clarifications is an additional provision set out under new Article 12(5), obligating parties to submit to the ICC Secretariat a list of persons and entities which they believe the prospective arbitrators should consider in making disclosures — as well as reasons why such persons should be considered. This list must be provided in tandem with the filing of each party’s respective Request, Answer, Request for Joinder, Answer to a Request for Joinder, or any request for an extension of time for submitting an Answer. New Article 12(5) is designed to promote the overall efficiency of the due diligence required in a bid to reduce the threat of late-stage issues arising.

A distinguishing feature of ICC arbitration was the requirement for tribunals to draw up ToR which defined the scope of the arbitration and the claims. Under the 2026 ICC Rules, ToR are no longer mandatory, although tribunals retain the discretion to adopt them.

Greater procedural significance will now rest on Procedural Order 1 and the CMC which remains mandatory under Article 24 and must be convened within 30 days of the file being transmitted to the tribunal. The CMC emerges under the 2026 ICC Rules as the central procedural mechanism for organizing the proceedings efficiently from the outset, while oversight by the institution remains firmly in place.

Importantly, no party will be able to advance new claims following the initial CMC without the authorization of the arbitral tribunal. It has thus become imperative that claims, defences and counterclaims are fully and clearly articulated at the outset in the Request for Arbitration and in the Answer to the Request.

Furthermore, the default time limit of six months for rendering an award, previously calculated from the ToR, has now been removed. The tribunal must now, as soon as possible following the final hearing, inform both the ICC Secretariat and the parties of the anticipated timing for the award.

ICC Emergency Arbitration allowing for urgent interim or conservatory relief prior to the constitution of the tribunal was introduced in the 2012 iteration of the rules and continues its expansion. In the 2026 ICC Rules at Article 1, Appendix IV the right to seek emergency relief is now available to “any party for which the President [of the ICC Court] is satisfied, based on information in the Application, that an arbitration agreement binding such party may exist.” The ICC explains that conferring on the President the authority to decide, on the basis of the information contained in the file, whether an arbitration agreement may bind a party reflects an effort to align the ICC Rules more closely with the realities of international trade.

Further, under new Article 7(1), Appendix IV, parties can now request preliminary arbitral orders on an ex parte basis.

Another procedural innovation of the 2026 ICC Rules is the introduction of a new form of fast-track arbitration: the Highly Expedited Arbitration Provisions (HEAP). Under new Appendix VI, parties opting for the HEAP can obtain a final award decided by a sole arbitrator within three-months of the initial CMC. Directed at parties in need to swiftly resolve a factually discrete dispute, the HEAP are available on an opt-in basis for disputes of any monetary size. Parties may agree to adopt the HEAP either at the arbitration agreement drafting stage or once the dispute arises by consent between the parties.

The ICC have clarified that the HEAP will be best suited for lower-complexity commercial disputes, claims with a simple factual matrix, or a distinct aspect of a dispute requires swift resolution. This positions the HEAP as compelling for time‑critical disputes, such as in the sports, technology, or construction sector where delay caused by specific, limited issues may result in significant financial harm. It also may be of particular relevance to parties engaged in joint development or other collaborative agreements, where the timely resolution of discrete disputes is critical to maintaining performance and project continuity.

Article 30 of the 2026 ICC Rules has introduced early determination as a new concept in ICC arbitration. Any party may now apply to the tribunal for an expedited determination of the dispute, for one or more claims or defenses on the grounds that (i) the submissions are manifestly without merit; or (ii) manifestly outside the jurisdiction of the arbitral tribunal. It is up to the tribunal's discretion whether the application for early determination is accepted, but it is worth noting the tribunal's discretion is fairly broad as it may adopt any measures “it considers appropriate” as per Article 30(2). Early determination was a feature in the 2020 Note to Parties, but the new 2026 ICC Rules now expressly anchor this guidance.

Sovereign states will take note that under Article 30, sovereign states defending against investor claims may seek early dismissal of claims that are "manifestly outside the arbitral tribunal's jurisdiction."

Under the 2026 ICC Rules, the joinder provisions under Article 8, have been revised to confirm that, once the tribunal has been constituted, an additional party may be joined with its consent, whereas previously the consent of all parties was required. The framework for consolidation under Article 11 remains unchanged.

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Ongoing geopolitical tensions and economic volatility have heightened the importance of international dispute resolution. By offering varied arbitration processes adaptable to a wide range of disputes in the current economic environment, the 2026 ICC Rules have achieved state-of-the-art arbitration efficiency. They reflect the practical realities of contemporary international trade while maintaining the core principles and integrity of ICC arbitration.