Intro to arbitration

Question 1

What is business law?

Answer 1

It is a branch of law that governs the relationships between individuals and companies engaged in commercial matters.

Question 2

What is arbitration?

Answer 2

It is an out-of-court method of settling disputes where parties with the help of private individuals called arbitrators, resolve their disputes, and the arbitrators pass a decision called arbitration award that the parties agree to follow.

Question 3

Why would parties prefer arbitration over court action? (advantages of arbitration)

Answer 3

1. Cost: arbitration is cheaper than court action and the parties involved will spend less financial resources resolving their disputes through arbitration rather than court action.
2. Time: The process of arbitration takes less time than court action as the arbitrators handle just the case before them whereas a court has multiple cases to handle which may
   cost the parties involved a lot of time.
3. No publicity: Arbitration cases are not open to the public, this enables the parties involved to settle their disputes in private.
4. Language: Parties involved can choose their preferred language to communicate in during the resolution of their dispute, which is something that is not possible in court.
5. Choice: The parties involved can choose the arbitrators who will handle their case, which is something that is not possible in court.

Question 3

Why would parties prefer arbitration over court action? (advantages of arbitration)

Answer 3

1. Cost: arbitration is cheaper than court action and the parties involved will spend less financial resources resolving their disputes through arbitration rather than court action.
2. Time: The process of arbitration takes less time than court action as the arbitrators handle just the case before them whereas a court has multiple cases to handle which may
   cost the parties involved a lot of time.
3. No publicity: Arbitration cases are not open to the public, this enables the parties involved to settle their disputes in private.
4. Language: Parties involved can choose their preferred language to communicate in during the resolution of their dispute, which is something that is not possible in court.
5. Choice: The parties involved can choose the arbitrators who will handle their case, which is something that is not possible in court.

Question 4

Why would parties choose to settle their disputes in court rather than through arbitration? (Disadvantages of arbitration)

Answer 4

Pressure: One of the parties involved may higher a powerful law firm that could put a lot of pressure on the case.

No Appeal: After the arbitrators pass the arbitration award there is no possibility to overturn or appeal the case.

Binding: The arbitration award alone is not binding on the parties

Enforcement: Arbitrators may not have the power to enforce the arbitration award

Competence: Some arbitrators may not be competent enough to handle the case before them.

Question 5

Which article of which document, states that an arbitration agreement must be done in writing?

Answer 5

Article 3 of the OHADA Uniform law