Independence,Impartiality And Liability Of Commercial Arbitrators Under Ethiopian Legal Framework: Comparative Insight

Abstract

Conflict of interest is something which is inevitable fact in commercial transaction among commercial communities. Under the current situations the commercial transaction within and across different jurisdiction are increasing. There are different dispute resolution mechanisms which are available for those individual which participate in such activities. Those dispute resolution mechanisms can be categorized into state court litigation and alternative dispute resolutions mechanisms in generals. Arbitration is one type of dispute resolution mechanisms among the different alternative dispute resolutions. The commercial communities make use of the arbitration due to different benefit of it such as dispute resolutions timely, with less cost, confidentially, as well as parties control over the procedure of the dispute resolutions. Owing to those positive features, arbitration as a dispute settlement mechanism has given a great legal recognition in almost all jurisdictions legal system among which Ethiopia is one. Similarly Arbitration has got recognition in various international legal documents. To avoid conflict of interest in justice administration, national laws and international legal document requires arbitrators to be independent and impartial while conducting the arbitrations to deliver the award which has integrity. In case when the arbitrators breach such and other duties the issue of the liability of the arbitrators may arise. Having all such situations in mind, the purpose of this paper is to examine Ethiopian arbitration laws that mainly encompassed in the Civil Code and the Civil Procedure Code on the independence, impartiality and liability of the arbitrators. The paper in detail will also discuss the disclosure obligations and the challenge and disqualifications of the arbitrators in case when there are doubt as to the independence and impartiality of the arbitrators. The researchers in doing these will take the different international legal instrument, institutional arbitration rules and national arbitration rules as a plat form to examine the Ethiopian arbitration rules as to issues in hand. The Ethiopian arbitration law has some inadequacy as regards to independence and impartiality of arbitrators. The Ethiopian arbitration rules are silent as to disclosure as well as standard for disclosure and standard for independence and impartiality as well as standard of challenge of the arbitrators. As regard to the liability of the arbitrators, the Ethiopian arbitration still opted for silence. So, upon examining Ethiopian arbitration law on the aforementioned issues in light of those entire instrument models, the researcher has provided some sorts of possible recommendations to that effect at the end.