European Gas Turbines SA (France) v. Westman International Ltd. (United Kingdom)

In 1985 the predecessor company to European Gas Turbines SA (EGT) (plaintiff) entered into an agreement with Westman International Ltd. (Westman) (defendant) for Westman to assist with the prequalification process for a petrochemical project. The contract included a provision for arbitration of disputes at the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), and the contract was governed by French law. After a dispute arose over commission fees related to the contract, Westman initiated arbitration proceedings in Paris at the ICC. Westman submitted a certified expense report at the request of the arbitral tribunal. An award in favor of Westman was ultimately issued that took the submitted expense report into consideration in calculating the award. EGT filed an action in the France Court of Appeal in Paris, seeking an order setting aside the award. EGT argued that the award was null and void because it violated international public policy in two ways. First, EGT argued that the contract underlying the award was a contract to traffic in influence and bribery. EGT argued that the evidence it presented to the arbitral tribunal showed a total lack of activity by Westman in carrying out the contract and asserted that this lack of activity showed that the true purpose of the contract was illicit. Second, EGT argued that the award was based on an expense report that was fraudulent. During the arbitration proceedings, EGT submitted an expert report showing that Westman had never paid two types of expenses that Westman claimed it spent fulfilling the contract: rent for an office and employee salaries.