Kunal Vajani appointed as member of Asian International Arbitration Centre Court of Arbitration

Former Fox & Mandal Joint Managing Partner Kunal Vajani has been appointed as a member of the recently established Court of Arbitration of the Asian International Arbitration Centre (AIAC).

Vajani’s term will run for one year with effect from January 1, 2026, with an option for re-appointment.

The appointment was formally conveyed by Malaysian Law Minister Azalina Othman Said.

Vajani recently resigned from Fox & Mandal to focus on his independent domestic and international litigation. He served as a Court Member (India) of the ICC International Court of Arbitration, Paris from 2016 to 2024.

He has a wide-ranging practice spanning litigation and alternative dispute resolution across civil, commercial, constitutional and white-collar criminal matters.

He is qualified in Indian law and is also a Solicitor of the courts of England and Wales. In addition, he is a registered practitioner with rights of audience before the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Courts.

In a press release, the AIAC said,

“He brings to the AIAC an unimpeachable depth of expertise in complex commercial and cross-border disputes across multiple jurisdictions.”

AIAC was established in 1978 with the support of the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization (AALCO). The establishment of the inaugural AIAC Court is part of a broader institutional reform initiative undertaken jointly by the Government of Malaysia and the AALCO.

The launch of its first Court of Arbitration, headed by former Malaysian Federal Court judge Mary Lim Thiam Suan, marks a new phase for the centre.

This development comes as the AIAC Suite of Rules 2026 takes effect from January 1, 2026, along with recent changes to Malaysia’s arbitration and adjudication laws aimed at strengthening the country’s dispute resolution framework.

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