Disputes whether or not a legal relationship exists between the
parties may be resolved by arbitration, according to the Supreme
Court.
The Civil Procedure Code permits the parties to provide for
resolving disputes concerning property rights or non-property
rights by arbitration, so long as they can be the object of a
settlement.
The case concerned a dispute about the validity of a currency
options agreement between a bank and an entrepreneur. The Supreme
Court ruled that:
- disputes about the existence of contractual relationships in general, including currency options agreements, may be the object of a settlement;
- it was irrelevant that the dispute concerned the alleged invalidity of the basis on which the relationship was established;
- if the parties can decide to create, change or end their contractual relationship (and therefore to settle their dispute), it follows that they can also decide to transfer these questions to be resolved by arbitration.
This article was written for Law-Now, CMS Cameron McKenna's free online information service. To register for Law-Now, please go to www.law-now.com/law-now/mondaq
Law-Now information is for general purposes and guidance only. The information and opinions expressed in all Law-Now articles are not necessarily comprehensive and do not purport to give professional or legal advice. All Law-Now information relates to circumstances prevailing at the date of its original publication and may not have been updated to reflect subsequent developments.
The original publication date for this article was 28/09/2011.