Anti-suit injunctions: arbitrability and foreign insolvency law

The English courts have adopted the principle that if the seat of the arbitration is England then an anti-suit injunction to restrain foreign proceedings will readily be granted and that forum non conveniens considerations do not come into play. RiverRock Securities Ltd v International Bank of St Petersburg [2020] EWHC 2483 (Comm), a decision of Foxton J, confirms that the English courts will construe the concept of non-arbitrability narrowly and that the fact that the dispute involves a matter justiciable only in a foreign court does not preclude the grant of an injunction.

RiverRock : the facts