On January 24, 2020, the Executive Branch of Peru approved the
Emergency Decree No. 020-2020
("Emergency Decree"), introducing
amendments to the rules on international and domestic arbitration
contained in Legislative Decree No. 1071
("Peruvian Arbitration Law").
Interestingly, the modifications provided by the Emergency
Decree only concern arbitration proceedings in which the State is
involved as a party, apparently as a response to the corruption
scandals in the region. The Emergency Decree suggests that the new
amendments are aimed to strengthen arbitration in the country and
avoid "bad habits" when the State is involved.
The decree was approved without the involvement of the Peruvian
Congress, which was dissolved last year in September – and
congressional elections were still to be held at the time of its
enactment. While the stated intention behind the amendments is to
be welcomed, some of the new provisions have already raised
concerns among the arbitration
