Bulgarian law enables parties to agree that in the event of a dispute between them, the dispute can be brought to and settled by a private arbitration (arbitrator or arbitration tribunal), rather than by a general civil court.
The arbitration procedure is a one-instance procedure and, because of its speed, is preferred by banks, financial institutions and other lenders. Arbitration helps these individuals or legal entities to obtain a writ of execution against a debtor as soon as possible, rather than waiting for years of three-instance court proceedings before general civil courts.
In theory, the purpose of the arbitration procedure is to resolve disputes arisen between traders in relation to non-performance of contracts.
The number of arbitration courts (tribunals) in Bulgaria is not small, but those who differ in their authority and quality of litigation can be counted on the fingers of one hand. The Arbitration Court at the BCCI (Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry) and the Arbitration Court at the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce can be distinguished as such.
A prerequisite for bringing a case before an arbitration court is the existence of arbitration clause in the contract agreed between the parties: a clause under which, in the event of a dispute between the parties, the dispute shall be considered by the agreed arbitration court.
For this purpose, it is necessary for the parties to agree on an appropriate arbitration clause, which to be recognized by the respective arbitration court.
In this regard, our law firm can fully assist you during contract negotiations and drafting arbitration clauses.
If you have already placed an arbitration clause in your contract and there is a non-performance of this contract, we can assist you in bringing a case against your debtor before the arbitration court specified in your contract.
Our law firm can assist you by reviewing the documentation and preparing your statement of claim, as well as by representing you at court hearings during the arbitration process until the arbitral award is rendered.
Then, on the basis of the arbitration award (arbitration decision), we shall obtain a writ of execution from the competent Bulgarian court and initiate enforcement proceedings against your debtor for collecting the outstanding debt.
If an arbitration court case has been brought against you in a local arbitration court, we can assist you with legal advice and representation during the arbitration process, defending your position on the claim.
We represent clients in cases for annulment of arbitral awards, as well as in cases for recognition and admission of enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in Bulgaria under the procedure of the Private International Law Code.
For more information on the above legal services, please contact us by using the e-mails and phone numbers provided in our “Contacts” section.
* This is one of our legal services, which include legal advice online.
More information about the arbitrary procedure you can find in the following related article in our „Blog”:
Exequatur of foreign arbitral awards