Siemens WLL v BIC Contracting LLC

The case of Siemens WLL v BIC Contracting LLC concerned an application by Siemens for the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards made by the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) against BIC Contracting LLC. Siemens, the applicant, sought to enforce awards for specific sums of money issued by the arbitral tribunals in foreign currencies. The Federal Court of Australia was tasked with determining whether the arbitral awards could be enforced under the International Arbitration Act 1974 (Cth).

The legal issues central to the decision involved the sufficiency of evidence required under the International Arbitration Act for the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards. Siemens had to demonstrate that the arbitral awards were duly authenticated and that the original arbitration agreements were produced or certified. Siemens did not have hard copy originals of the awards or agreements, but had received them by email from the LCIA and ICC. Siemens also needed to address the conversion of foreign currency awards into Australian dollars and establish the appropriate date for conversion.

The court found that the awards were sufficiently authenticated as they were signed by all members of the arbitral tribunals and transmitted by the secretariats of the LCIA and ICC, in accordance with their rules. The arbitration agreements were considered sufficiently certified as they were deposed to by a partner of Siemens’ solicitors, who was responsible for the arbitral proceedings. The court held that the requirements of section 9 of the International Arbitration Act were met, including the need to demonstrate non-payment of the awarded sums by the respondent. The court also determined that the appropriate date for converting the foreign currency awards into Australian dollars was the date of the application for enforcement.

The final orders of the court included judgment for Siemens against BIC Contracting LLC in specified amounts, with interest from a particular date, and orders for the payment of costs. Siemens was granted liberty to apply for their costs to be assessed on a lump sum basis based on the papers.