The IBA Guidelines on Conflict of Interest in International Arbitration have undergone the second revision since their issuance in 2004. This article discusses the importance of the IBA Guidelines as a soft law instrument and analyzes the revisions introduced into the newest version of the text published in May 2024. The aim of the article is an assessment of the revisions made in order to answer to the question of where do the revisions bring the IBA Guidelines from a broader, policy point of view. The analysis contains discussion of interesting court decisions, surveys, reports and arbitration rules and laws. The article shows that the IBA Guidelines have not been overhauled. The areas that have been identified by a survey organized by the IBA Arbitration Committee as needing attention have largely been addressed. Importantly, however, the burden on the arbitrator to disclose circumstances that could raise doubts as to the arbitrator’s impartiality or independence has been broadened. Additionally, the parties have to inform about more types of relationships as compared to the 2014 version of the IBA Guidelines. Consequently, the analysis of the amendments reveals that the IBA Guidelines are promoting broader transparency.

Document production is a recurring and controversial matter in international arbitration, and the IBA Rules on the Taking of Evidence in International Arbitration, first introduced in 1999 and then revised in 2010, aim to enhance clarity and predictability on this matter.1 NOMA (Nordic Offshore and Maritime Arbitration Association) has provided Rules on Evidence, which rely heavily on the said IBA Rules. This paper provides a comparison between the two sets of rules, as well as a systematic interpretation of the relevant parts of the NOMA Rules of Evidence. By identifying certain interpretational challenges of the NOMA Rules of Evidence, the analysis shows the risk of making even small changes in copied rules. Apart from suggestions regarding interpretation, some recommendations regarding improvements in the text of the said rules are also provided.