Commercial Courts In Europe ' Alternative To Arbitration?

• Published date: 07 December 2022
• Subject Matter: Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration, Arbitration & Dispute Resolution, Trials & Appeals & Compensation
• Law Firm: OBLIN Attorneys at Law LLP
• Author: Ms Anna Weinzierl and Klaus Oblin

1. Commercial Courts in Europe - Alternative to Arbitration?

In recent years several European countries have established courts or chambers which solely deal with commercial disputes and are structured so as to attract and better accommodate international parties. Since these Commercial Courts are targeted towards international commercial disputes some question their competitiveness with international commercial arbitration.

In a recent Webinar hosted by the German Arbitration Institute (DIS) and moderated by Hartmut Hamann, renowned lawyers and judges with experience in international commercial disputes shed light on the question whether the European Commercial Courts form a viable alternative to arbitration and in which cases it would be advisable to choose the jurisdiction of these Commercial Courts above an arbitration agreement.

1.1 Overview over Commercial Courts in Europe

In an attempt to make their domestic legal framework more attractive for parties involved in cross-border commercial disputes and thereby prevent them from transferring their disputes to the jurisdiction of foreign countries, France, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands established internationally oriented Commercial Courts. Although the idea and aspiration for such Commercial Courts already existed beforehand, Brexit undeniably fostered their establishment seeing that London was a hotspot for international commercial disputes but became less attractive for parties after the UK has lost its connection to other EU Member States.

The panelists displayed in which ways these Commercial Courts differ from other national courts and are better suited for international disputes by the examples of Paris, Amsterdam, Stuttgart and Zurich.

1. 1. 1 Paris

Laure Aldebert introduced the International Commercial Center at the Paris Court of Appeal (ICCP-CA) which was established in 2018 as a division within the economic division at the Paris Court of Appeal. She reports that this international chamber introduced a new way of approaching cases based on the already existing procedural rules by taking a more functional approach towards the resolution of international disputes. The use of the English language before court has been made possible and the parties are able to present documents such as contracts in English. However, the proceedings themselves remain to be conducted in French. Judgments are also still issued in French language, however parties may request a certified English translation.

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