Arbitrator Cannot Be Appointed Only By One Party To A Dispute

Originally published in 27 March 2017

Pursuant to the decision passed by the Supreme Court under case no. 23 Cdo 1098/2016 on November 8, 2016, it is not possible to arrange in an arbitration agreement that arbitrators could be selected only by one party to a dispute. Therefore, the provision stating that "the selection of an arbitrator in a dispute is up to the petitioner" is inadmissible. Such an invalid selection of an arbitrator also causes the arbitration clause invalid as a whole. The manner of appointment or selection of arbitrators must be always "in compliance with the principle of equality of parties as one of the fundamental procedural principles, which serves as the basis for the judicial and arbitration proceedings."