I] Arbitration

Contracts between Egyptian and foreign parties commonly provide for some form of international arbitration in the event of any disputes. The Court of Cassation has on a number of occasions confirmed the validity of such arbitration clauses. An Egyptian court will generally respect an arbitration clause and stay proceedings brought before it. Arbitration may be conducted under any set of rules chosen by the parties.

One of the most popular set of rules used in contracts between Egyptian and foreign parties is that International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). Arbitration under the ICC rules may be held in Egypt or abroad.

The local arbitration body that is often used is the Cairo Regional Center for International Commercial Arbitration (the Center). The Center applies the rules of the United Nations Commissions on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). There are no requirements in Egyptian law that arbitration be conducted under the auspices of the Center or in Egypt.

The Arbitration Law brings Egypt further into line with the UNCITRAL model law on international commercial arbitration (which it appears to have been largely modeled after).

The Law is a comprehensive statement of the law on Arbitration and therefore facilitates the conduct and enforcement of international arbitration proceedings in Egypt. The Arbitration Law now requires only that the following conditions to be met for the enforcement of an arbitration award in Egypt:

• the award does not contravene any judgment issued by Egyptian courts on the subject matter of the dispute;

• the award does not contravene public order or policy in Egypt; and

• the award is in respect of an arbitration to which the defendant received due notice.

The Arbitration Law also clarifies certain aspects of Egyptian arbitration law by legislating in areas that were previously neglected. Under the Arbitration Law, the Egyptian Government is specifically deemed accountable for arbitration agreements it enters into and may no longer take the position that is not subject to commercial arbitration clauses. In addition, the ability of the arbitration tribunal to appoint experts are outlined in the text of the Arbitration Law.

The Arbitration Law provides that annulment proceedings all arbitration awards must be initiated within 90 days from notification of the award’s issuance. However, this requirement does not preclude the enforcement of the award except under certain circumstances.
Applications for the enforcement of Arbitral awards must be accompanied by the original award or a signed copy; a copy of the agreement to arbitrate an Arabic translation of the award, authenticated by the competent authority if the award was not issued in Arabic; and a copy of the minutes evidencing the deposit of the award with the competent court in Egypt (usually the Cairo Court Of Appeal). Arbitration Law therefore provides a firm base for arbitration and enforcement of awards in Egypt.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-14