How long does arbitration take?

Question

José Manuel Alburquerque · Accepted Answer

It depends on what the parties have agreed and on the rules of the institution administering it. If nothing has been agreed, the arbitrators have six months from the filing of the defence, extendable by a further two months, to make the arbitral award, which is their decision. To that must be added the time it takes to appoint the arbitrators and to file the claim and the defence. As there is no appeal against the award, the matter is usually resolved sooner than a court case with its appeals. Consumer arbitration is shorter, at ninety calendar days, extendable in complex cases. The stages An arbitration normally goes through these stages: The request. One party asks the other to submit the dispute to arbitration or files the request with the institution agreed upon. The appointment of the arbitrators and their acceptance. If the parties cannot agree, the arbitrators are appointed by the institution or, as a last resort, by the “Tribunal Superior de Justicia”, the regional High Court. This delays the start. The claim and the defence, within the time limits set by the parties, the rules or the arbitrators. The evidence and, if one is held, the hearing, at which the parties present their arguments to the arbitrators. The award, which brings the arbitration to an end. The time limit for the award Unless the parties have agreed otherwise, the arbitrators must decide within six months of the filing of the defence or of the end of the time limit for filing it. They can extend that time limit by up to two months by a reasoned decision. The institutions' rules may set other time limits. The parties can also agree on them. If the award is made after the time limit, it is in principle still valid, although the arbitrators may be liable for the damage caused by the delay. In consumer arbitration, the award must be made and notified within ninety calendar days of the decision to open the proceedings. In particularly complex cases, the arbitral body can extend that time limit by up to a further ninety calendar days, by a reasoned decision. After the award Within ten days of being notified of the award, either party may ask for errors to be corrected, for a point to be clarified or for the award to be supplemented. The arbitrators decide within ten days, or within twenty if the award is to be supplemented. There is no appeal against the award. It can only be set aside, on limited grounds laid down by law, by the Civil and Criminal Chamber of the regional High Court, on an application made within two months of its notification. In the meantime, the award can be enforced. The losing party can only ask for enforcement to be suspended if it offers a guarantee, called security (“caución”), covering the amount awarded and the damage caused by the delay.