Month: February 2015

by Ezequiel H. Vetulli (associate at Pérez Alati, Grondona, Benites, Arntsen & Martínez de Hoz)

 

(a) Introduction

Argentina has recently adopted new legislation on arbitration. Historically in Argentina, civil and commercial law were regulated in separate national codes; however, after many unsuccessful attempts, they have finally been unified, as the National Congress has enacted a new Civil and Commercial Code (“the Code”), effective as of August 2015. This Code contains the new regulation on arbitration.

Until now, arbitration in Argentina has been governed by the procedural code of each province and in Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, by the National Code of Civil and Commercial Procedure (“the Procedural Code”). Consequently, the most obvious change is that arbitrations across the country will now be governed by a single code. Given that the current provincial regulations are quite old fashioned, a new regulation has long been awaited. On this basis, Argentina seems to follow the line of many countries passing national laws on arbitration, which is a plausible way to modernize the Argentinean legal system.

Continue reading Update On The Arbitration Legislation In Argentina: A Step Forward Or Backward?

 

By Ricardo Dalmaso Marques, Fernanda Marques Dal Mas, Marilia Machado Muchiuti

 

(A) revision process of the IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest in International Arbitration

 

1. On October 23, 2014, the International Bar Association (“IBA”) Council approved the most recent version of its Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest in International Arbitration (“Guidelines”), which are a set of non-binding guidelines that have gained much attention and recognition in the international arbitration community over the 10 years of their existence.

 

2. The Guidelines main purpose is to ensure the impartiality and independence of arbitrators and other professionals involved in commercial and investment arbitration, whether they are lawyers or not. Appointment of arbitrators, possible grounds for their challenge and disclosure of relevant information are some of the issues that the Guidelines have tackled to strengthen legal certainty for the benefit of counsel and, of course, the parties.

 

3. With this goal in mind, the 2014 IBA Guidelines have attempted to draw on the recent worldwide experience under their former version, which has been the subject of several studies carried out by the IBA’s Arbitration Committee since 2012. Although the Guidelines remain essentially intact in terms of purpose and approach (“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”), the most recent version introduces new directives and further clarifications as to the proper application and interpretation of the existing provisions. Some of the most relevant revisions are addressed below.

Continue reading THE 2014 IBA GUIDELINES ON CONFLICTS OF INTEREST IN INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION

By Mostafa A. Hagras (advocate, Egypt)^[*^]

Introduction in Brief: National courts’ involvement in the arbitration process is indispensable- when a State enacts a set of arbitration laws, it specifies a court or courts to perform certain functions such as assistance or supervision, and presumably not of impediment, to the arbitration process. The UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration, which Egypt enacted in 1994,^[[1]^] enables national courts to perform limited functions. It enables courts:

• to decide on the challenge of an arbitrator under Article 13 (3);
• to review the arbitral tribunal’s preliminary award on jurisdiction under Article 16 (3);
• to review the arbitral tribunal’s final award under Article 34 (2); and
• to confirm the conditions for granting and to visit the grounds for refusing the recognition and enforcement of foreign awards under Articles 35 and 36, respectively.

Continue reading The Egyptian Arbitration Law and Anti-Arbitration Injunctions Due to Expiry the Time Limit for the Final Award – Case Study