La intervención judicial en la adopción de medidas cautelares en el arbitraje comercial internacional

Abstract

The thesis titled judicial intervention in adopting provisional measures in international commercial arbitration analizes all the problems involved with interim protection in the context of arbitration. Often, in arbitration, as in litigation, provisional relief may be needed to preserve the status quo of the parties pending the resolution of the dispute. Such protection, when requested in good faith, facilitates dispute resolution and should be as available in arbitrated disputes as in disputes before the courts. In many cases, an order for provisional measures is an integral part of the procedures. The main problem is to determine who has the power to order provisional relief: the arbitrators or the courts. From the point of view of the logical of arbitration, it is essential for arbitrators to have the power to take provisional measures. This principle flows from their primary task of ensuring the efficient settlement of a dispute. Nevertheless, one must take into account that the institution of arbitration has some inherent limitations which make necessary the courts intervention in terms of assistance. Firstly, in the sens that they will not always be able to act at the precise moment when the need for measures is felt. For example, if the arbitral tribunal is not yet constituted. And secondly, due to the lack of coercitive power of the arbitrators as well as the lack of executive force of their provisional decissions. From a practical point of view, it would be better that the provisional measures were ordered by the courts as far as they are executive orders, but only in the state where they are taken. There will be very difficult or even impossible to get them effective in other countries, due to the inexistence of international conventions applicable. What is all the arbitral proceeding for? All this means that the cooperation of the state courts is needed in order to consider arbitration an effective way to solve disputes. The idea that an agreement of the parties for arbitration to settle their disputes excludes court jurisdiction doesn¿t work for interim measures. Fortunately, the UNCITRAL (United Comission for International Trade Law) has created a working group on arbitration which is preparing some new articles on this subject to be included in the Arbitration Model Law of 1985. Although we all know that the model law has no binding character, it helps very much for unifying all the domestic systems that¿s why we hope they will be aproved very soon.