ACICA Celebrates 40th Anniversary on eve of hugely successful Australian Arbitration Week and record-breaking International Arbitration Conference

ACICA recently celebrated its 40^th anniversary on the eve of a record-breaking edition of Australian Arbitration Week (AAW) in Sydney from 12–17 October 2025.  The 13^th edition of AAW was the most successful yet, featuring over 65 events organised by more than 50 organisations from across the globe.

AAW 2025 officially commenced with a Welcome Reception and ACICA’s 40^th Anniversary Celebration at the Sydney offices of Corrs Chambers Westgarth on the evening of Sunday 12 October, bringing together more than 180 guests in a stunning setting overlooking the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House.  Distinguished guests and speakers included ACICA President Judith Levine, Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley AC KC, Governor of New South Wales and the Honourable Stephen Gageler AC, Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia. The formalities concluded with a Life Fellow Membership Ceremony, during which the Governor awarded ACICA Life Fellowships to three former ACICA Presidents – Dr Michael Pryles AM PBM (2002–2008), Professor Doug Jones AO (2008–2015) and Ms Georgia Quick (2021–2024) – for their outstanding contributions to ACICA.

The International Arbitration Conference 2025 (IA Conference), the flagship event of AAW 2025, took place the following day, Monday 13 October.  The theme of the IA Conference was ‘Revolutions and Solutions: Future-Proofing Arbitration’, inviting reflection on the innovations and challenges shaping the future of arbitration.  More than 300 delegates from 18 countries benefitted from insights shared by eminent speakers from around the world, breaking all records for IA Conferences to date.  The Honourable Andrew Bell, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, opened the Conference with a thought-provoking and insightful Keynote Address on AI in International Arbitration.  Another highlight of the day was a fireside chat between Professor Bernard Hanotiau (Partner, Hanotiau Tossens Goldman, Brussels) and Premala Thiagarajan SC (Barrister, List A Barristers, Melbourne) exploring multi-party and multi-contract issues on the occasion of the 20^th anniversary of Professor Hanotiau’s landmark book ‘Complex Arbitrations: Multi-party, Multi-contract & Multi-issue’.

AAW 2025 and the IA Conference showcased Australia’s growing role within the international arbitration community.

Read the full media release here.

See photos from the Welcome Reception (here) and from the IA Conference (here).

See the IA Conference programme here.