(MENAFN- The Peninsula) By Lani Rose R Dizon I The Peninsula
The Qatar International Centre for Conciliation and Arbitration (QICCA) is set to update its arbitration rules and is considering the inclusion of emergency arbitration provisions modeled after the ones started by the Paris-based International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), a QICCA official said here on Wednesday.
Talking to The Peninsula on the sidelines of the seminar ‘ICC Emergency Arbitration Provisions as an Alternative to Qatar Court' which was co-organised by the ICC Qatar and Squire Patton Boggs and supported by the Qatar Chamber, QICCA Principal Legal Counsel Dr Minas Khatchadourian said: 'Emergency arbitration is now becoming an international trend. When all the leading arbitration institutions in the world amended their rules, they made specific chapters for emergency arbitration rules.
'QICCA under the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry is actually preparing a project to update its rules, because its rules are from 2012. So especially with the end of many mega projects and the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2022, we may take into consideration to include a chapter for emergency arbitration provisions in the new rules.
Emergency arbitration, which was introduced by the ICC in 2012, seeks to provide urgent temporary relief to parties in the middle of a dispute.
The procedure offers short-term solution for parties that are unable to wait for the constitution of an Arbitral Tribunal. Any emergency measure granted takes the form of an order, which aims to prevent irreparable harm to parties involved.
Tarek Saad, counsel at Squire Patton Boggs and main speaker at the seminar, said that a total of 95 emergency arbitration cases have now been received worldwide; with half of them related to the construction, engineering, energy sectors, real estate, telecom, transport and natural resources.
Saad added that one case has also been filed in Qatar, and was handled by the Squire Patton Boggs.
He said: 'The case involved a subcontractor who had given a very large performance bond. The contractor was going to pull the bond from the bank, take the money and flee the country. We went in to get a freezing order to stop the other party from pulling the bond and the ruling went in favor of the subcontractor.
'In the past, if you're going to go through the normal process of arbitration, you file your application and the other side gets 30 days to respond. The arbitrator gets appointed, and the process takes several months. With the emergency arbitration, the process will be settled within 17 days from when the case is filed.
According to Saad, the emergency arbitration requests included anti-suit or anti-arbitrator injunctions, maintaining status quo, preserving assets or property, demanding performance of contractual obligations and restraining sale of stock or products due to alleged breach of contract.
Other measures also related to corporate governance, ordering security, and preventing a party from drawing down funds from a performance bond, he added.
He also said the emergency arbitration provisions can help protect both the existing companies in Qatar as well as the growing number of foreign companies investing in World-Cup related projects in the country.
'With the World Cup approaching, deals are being done between Qatari companies and companies from all over the world. Deals are being done between companies outside of Qatar that are doing business in Qatar. And everybody is going to want a fair, efficient, and quick dispute resolution process.
' ICC arbitration is one that has been trusted for decades. It's extremely well-established organization, and these emergency arbitration rules will give people incentive and even more people to agree to ICC arbitrations so that they can get their disputes resolved, Saad added.
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