Establishing Florida as a Hemispheric Center for International Commercial Arbitration would help build upon the state’s status as the “Gateway of the Americas” and would contribute to the economic development of the state. International arbitrations are held very often and result in the need for hotel rooms, flights, and restaurants for involved parties. In addition, local law firms are usually hired to carry out arbitrations. It is important to note that one of the main attractions of Florida as an international arbitration hub is that Florida law permits non-Florida lawyers to conduct international arbitrations in the state.

With assistance from the Beacon Council, the Gateway Florida Arbitration Committee has developed a comparative cost survey to be used for the creation of a Miami brochure. The survey compares direct flights to various cities in Latin America from Geneva, London, Madrid, New York, Paris and Miami; costs of court reporters, interpretation, hotel rooms, cost of temporary office space and forensic accountant fees. In terms of direct flights, no other city could compare with Miami.

The Arbitration Committee, chaired by Burton Landy has established the Miami International Arbitration Society (MIAS) with a membership consisting of law firms, independent professionals, corporations, educators and associations. MIAS will cooperate and work with organizations such as the Interamerican Bar Association, the University of Miami Law School, the Florida Bar International Law Section, the Dade County Bar Association, the Cuban American Bar Association and others.  Projects include establishing task forces for individual projects including awarding an annual international arbitration prize, offering training programs and co-sponsoring conferences and seminars.

For more information on Gateway Florida's efforts to establish Florida as a Hemispheric Center for Arbitration or if you are interested in becoming a member of the Miami International Arbitration Society, contact Ines Calderon at 305-476-5451 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it