Setting Aside Arbitral Awards In Austria: Dismissal For Failure To State A Valid Ground For Challenge

Introduction

On 11 January 2023, the Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, OGH) handed down an order¹ in which it dealt with the procedural aspects of challenging arbitral awards. The OGH clarified that whether the challenge states a valid claim is to be assessed at every stage of the proceedings. If the challenge does not state a valid claim, it is to be rejected by the court, even if the appellee has already filed an answer to the challenge.

Facts

The underlying dispute concerned the purchase and sale of face masks. The appellee (Claimant in the arbitration), a company located in England, had purchased one million face masks from an intermediary in the United States. The intermediary, in turn, purchased the masks from the appellant (Respondent in the arbitration), an Austrian company. The contract between the appellant and the American intermediary contained an arbitration agreement.