2008 Dominican Republic Arbitration Law
The Dominican Republic enacted a new domestic arbitration statute in 2008. The law is fashioned after the Model Law of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (the "UNCITRAL Model Law").
For the Dominican Republic, the adoption of a modern arbitration law (Ley No. 489-08) represented an effort to replace the prior regime contained in the Code of Civil Procedure. The new law complies with the country's international treaty obligations, including under the 1958 United Nations Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (the "New York Convention") which was enacted by the Dominican Republic in 2002. In particular, Articles 9(4) and 42 of the new law establish that international treaties govern the enforcement of both: (1) awards rendered in the Dominican Republic but enforced abroad; and (2) awards rendered abroad but enforced in the Dominican Republic.
Article 9(6) of the new law provides that the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards shall be determined by Dominican Courts of First Instance located in the Distrito Nacional, whose orders shall have effect throughout the country. The procedure for the recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards is further outlined in Chapter VIII of the new law. In particular, Article 45(1) contains the grounds for non-recognition of arbitral awards in the Dominican Republic — irrespective of the country of issuance — which closely follow the grounds established in Article 36(1) of the UNCITRAL Model Law and Article V of the New York Convention.
The new law deems arbitration agreements in international cases valid as long as they meet the requirements of the jurisdiction specified by the parties, that is applicable to the controversy, or as established under Dominican law (Article 10(5)). Moreover, the statute limits the authority of Dominican courts over matters subject to arbitration. In this regard, Article 12(1) requires courts to declare themselves "incompetent" when faced with matters covered by an arbitration agreement. Additionally, Article 20 of the new law adopts the principle of kompetenz-kompetenz which allows arbitral tribunals to rule on their own jurisdiction, including determinations as to the existence and validity of the arbitration agreement.
The new statute additionally provides for interim relief by both Dominican courts and arbitral tribunals. In this regard, Article 9(3) allows interim measures to be adopted by courts located in the place where the award will be enforced or, alternatively, where the measures will have effect or where the goods affected by such measures are located. At the same time, Article 21 permits arbitral tribunals to order provisional measures upon the request of one of the parties to the arbitration.
In conclusion, the new arbitration law enacted in 2008 in the Dominican Republic serves as a positive development for international arbitration in both jurisdictions.
1 All quotations from Latin American arbitration laws contained in this article are free translations from the Spanish original.
