arbitration

WHAT IS ARBITRATION?

Arbitration is an instrument for resolving civil and commercial disputes used both in Italy and abroad. It offers an alternative to ordinary legal proceedings for tackling disputes arising between the parties concerned. A key feature of this process is the option of the parties to pick the arbitrators who will settle the controversy from technicians and experts in the field. The arbitrators can be appointed by the parties; alternatively, they can be nominated by the Arbitration Body.

The arbitrator for the procedure, in his or her guise as sole or joint Judge (in the event of the decision being deferred to a board of several arbitrators) returns a fully-fledged ruling in its own right.

Administrative arbitration offers a number of advantages: confidentiality, clear, simple rules, short timeframes, and costs set out in a fee scale.

The Arbitration Body can also provide assistance to those requesting it prior to arbitration. This can take the form of support when contracts and agreements are drawn up, and help in drafting arbitration clauses.

BINDING AND NON-BINDING ARBITRATION

Arbitration is a procedure designed to replace court action, whereby the parties give a Sole Arbitrator, or a Board of Arbitrators, the power to settle the dispute.

It can be:

• binding: when the arbitrators settling the controversy are obliged to observe legal regulations and, on concluding the proceedings, issue a judgment destined to become a binding sentence;
• non-binding: the arbitrators can settle the dispute without complying with given procedural formalities, issuing a judgment which merely serves for negotiation purposes between the parties. Non-binding awards cannot become an instrument of direct enforcement; they can instead be used to request an injunction, or as documentary proof in legal proceedings.

The Arbitrators may reach their decision as follows:

• according to law: when the Arbitrators, in order to reach a decision, solely apply legal guidelines governing the issue in hand.
• according to fairness: when the Arbitrators can depart from legal stipulations and refer to practices or principles of justice in a broader sense, in respect of the case in question, its elements and its circumstances.

ARBITRATION CLAUSE: WHAT IS IT? WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT IN CONTRACTS?

In order to avoid ordinary legal proceedings, the Parties concerned must expressly state in writing that they agree to initiate an arbitration process.

Arbitration may be used if the parties have included an arbitration clause in the contract or company by-laws or, if the dispute is already ongoing, if they reach a compromise.

Art. 807 of the Civil Procedure Code states that “the compromise must be made in writing, under penalty of invalidation, and must set out the object of the dispute”.

Art. 808 of the Civil Procedure Code, with regard to the arbitration clause, states: “in the contract they stipulate, or in a separate deed, the parties can establish that any disputes arising from the contract shall be settled by arbitrators, on condition that the disputes can be the object of an arbitration agreement.”

CAM-OIM offers a possible arbitration clause for including in contracts. It also handles cases where disputes have already arisen by signing a compromise.

The clause is in Italian; if a clause is required in a different language, we advise contacting the administration department of the arbitration body.

Arbitration Clause

CAM-OIM ARBITRATION RULES

CAM-OIM arbitration rules apply to all the proceedings handled. They ensure that arbitrators adhere to standards of transparency, skill and integrity in managing proceedings.

Rules

CAM-OIM adheres to the standards set out by UNCITRAL (the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law) in managing international arbitration.

UNCITRAL Rules

APPOINTMENT OF ARBITRATORS

The rules of the Arbitration Body require that appointed arbitrators meet the necessary requirements in terms of Integrity, Deontology, Conduct and Fairness.

List of Arbitrators 

HOW MUCH DOES ARBITRATION COST WITH CAM-OIM?

Costi contenuti e convenienza emergono dal tariffario allegato.

Table of fees

REQUEST ARBITRATION

The Arbitration Body governs proceedings according to an arbitration agreement drafted in writing, which refers to the wording of the rules of the Order of Engineers of Milan. If there is no arbitration agreement between the parties, the party interested in promoting arbitration before the Arbitration Body may request it with an application for arbitration.

To make an Arbitration request, the claimant must submit the request to the Administrative department. The request is signed by the party or by the defendant vested with power of attorney, and details, or is accompanied by:

a) the name and domiciled address of the parties;

b) a description of the dispute and demands, indicating the relevant economic value;

c) appointment of the arbitrator, or indications concerning the number of arbitrators and the choice thereof;

d) any annexes deemed useful;

e) any indications regarding regulations which apply to the procedure, and regulations applying to the merit of the dispute, or to rulings concerning fairness and language of arbitration;

f) the power of attorney awarded to the defender, if one has been appointed;

g) the arbitration agreement, namely the invitation to the counterparty to declare if it accepts arbitration or not;

h) proof of its transmission to the counterparty, in the event that it is the claimant transmitting the request for arbitration directly to the respondent.

The Administrative Department sends the arbitration request to the respondent within five working days of the date of its filing. The claimant may also send the arbitration request directly to the respondent, notwithstanding the fact that the request itself must still be filed with the Administrative Department; in this case the latter shall not forward the request to the respondent if proof is provided that the claimant has instead sent the request.

BECOME A CAM-OIM ARBITRATOR

Arbitration is an instrument for resolving civil and commercial disputes used both in Italy and abroad. It offers an alternative to ordinary legal proceedings.

A key feature of this process is the option open to parties to choose the arbitrators who will settle the controversy from technicians and experts in the field.

The arbitrators can be appointed by the parties; alternatively, the appointment can be made by the Arbitration Body.

The arbitrator for the procedure, in his or her guise as sole or joint Judge (in the event of the decision being deferred to a board of several arbitrators) returns a fully-fledged ruling.

Administrative arbitration offers a number of advantages: confidentiality, clear, simple rules, short timeframes and costs set out in a fee scale.

The Arbitration Body can also provide assistance to those requesting it prior to arbitration. This can take the form of support when contracts and agreements are drawn up, and in drafting arbitration clauses.