Voluntary Arbitration

Voluntary Arbitration

1. A Notic​e of Arbitration (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Notice’) containing the arbitration clause or the arbitration agreement must be filed by Claimant with the Malta Arbitration Centre (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Centre’), accompanied by the prescribed filing fee as contained in Appendix A to the Arbitration Rules, 2004.
 
2. The Registrar of the Centre shall notify the Respondent with the Notice by registered mail. This notification shall also contain the date, time and venue of the preliminary meeting, which meeting is scheduled to take place within approximately ten days from the filing of the Notice. This preliminary meeting, during which the dates for the submission of the necessary documents and other details regarding the arbitral process will be discussed, is presided by the Registrar of the Centre, if the arbitral tribunal (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Tribunal’) is not yet appointed.
 
3. Once the Tribunal accepts its appointment, the arbitrator/s sign a declaration regarding his/her independence and impartiality in the case.
 
4. During the first sitting, the Tribunal draws up a schedule of the sittings with the parties and their legal counsel and, among other things, the fees payable to the Tribunal are discussed.
 
5. The Claimant shall file a Statement of Claim, which can be filed with the Notice and the Respondent shall file a Statement of Defence, which can also contain a Counter-Claim. When a Counter-Claim is filed, the Respondent must pay the prescribed filing fee. The Statements of Claim and Defence and the Counter-Claim must contain the details prescribed in Articles 29 and 30 of the Arbitration Act. The provisions of Article 40 of the Arbitration Act will apply if the Statements of Claim and Defence are not filed.
 
6. During the proceedings, each party shall have the burden of proving the facts relied on to support his/her claim or defence (in terms of Article 35). The evidence of witnesses in an arbitration shall be produced either viva voce or by affidavit (in terms of Article 36). Hearings shall be held in camera unless the parties agree otherwise (in terms of Article 37[4]).
 
7. After the proceedings have been declared closed, the Tribunal proceeds to deliver the award. The Centre will inform the parties that the award has been delivered and requests the Claimant to provisionally pay the balance of the arbitral expenses, that is the expenses due to the Centre and the fees and expenses of the Tribunal. The award must be in writing, signed by the arbitral tribunal, contain the date on which and the place where it was deemed to have been made.
 
8. Within fifteen days from the receipt of the award, either party with notice to the other party, may request that the Tribunal gives an interpretation of the award (in terms of Article 47); or that the Tribunal corrects in the award any errors in computation, any clerical or typographical errors or any errors of similar nature (in terms of Article 48); or that the Tribunal makes an additional award as to claims presented in the arbitral proceedings but omitted from the award (in terms of Article 49).
 
9. Within fifteen days from the receipt of the award and after exhausting the remedies listed in the preceding paragraph, if applicable, either party may appeal against the award on points of law only by means of an application to the Court of Appeal (Inferior Jurisdiction).  The application must be notified to the Tribunal and to the Centre as soon as practicable but not later than fifteen days after the application is filed.
 
10. If no recourse is taken against the award, the Registrar shall register the award on the lapse of thirty days from the date on which the award has been notified to the parties.  Once this registration is effected, the award shall be final and binding and constitutes an executive title for all intents and purposes of law.
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