The International Council for Commercial Arbitration (“<span class="news-text_medium">ICCA</span>”) has published the 2026 update of the Report of the Cross-Institutional Task Force on Gender Diversity in Arbitral Appointments and Proceedings.
The report aims to provide comprehensive data on the appointment of women arbitrators, monitor progress on gender diversity across international arbitration and identify opportunities and best practices to improve the representation of women in arbitral appointments and proceedings. The 2026 update builds on the task force’s original work on gender diversity in arbitration, first published in 2020. The latest edition draws on data and statistical input from 39 arbitration organisations, initiatives and firms.
A key finding of the report is that women’s representation on arbitral tribunals has improved significantly over the last decade. Between 2015 and 2024, the proportion of women appointed to tribunals doubled from 12.8% to 25.3%. However, the report also highlights a continuing gap between party appointments and institutional appointments. In 2024, women accounted for 20.8% of party-appointed arbitrators, compared with 37.7% of arbitrators appointed by institutions.
The updated report also expands its scope beyond tribunal appointments. It includes a new section on gender representation and career trends among expert witnesses in international arbitration. That section is based on data from a 2025 survey of 65 international arbitration expert witnesses. It finds that women experts remain underrepresented and are less likely to hold senior roles in this area.
The report further emphasises the importance of mentoring and co-testimony initiatives as practical ways to increase the visibility, experience and progression of women expert witnesses in international arbitration. Overall, the 2026 update shows that while international arbitration has made measurable progress in improving gender diversity among arbitrators, further work is needed. In particular, the report identifies party appointments and expert witness roles as areas where greater attention and targeted initiatives are required.
<span class="news-text_medium">Source:</span> ICCA, 2026 Update to ICCA Gender Diversity Report Now Available, 11 June 2026.
