Testing the Compatibility of the Progress of Harmonization of Ethiopian Arbitration Laws Towards International Arbitration Laws and Experiences: A Comparative Study

Abstract

Harmonized arbitration law is often justified on the grounds that it creates stability and certainty in arbitration process and enabling parties to predict in advance the proper laws that are likely to apply to their disputes. The United Nations General Assembly recommended member states to give due consideration to the Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration and to harmonize their national arbitration legislation. Moreover, the 1958 New York Convention provides uniform principles and standards which are used to safeguard the enforcement of arbitration agreement and foreign arbitral awards. Accordingly pro-arbitration countries‘ modernized their arbitration laws either adopting these soft and hard laws or considering their own experiences. In order to cope with the emerging modern laws and practices in international commercial arbitration recently Ethiopia repealed its arbitration laws and enacted the new Ethiopian Arbitration law. Moreover, Ethiopian Parliament enacted proclamation to ratify New York Convention. Despite these legal reforms, these laws still have the gaps, inconsistency and differences under their salient areas. In this regard, the study comparing these laws with international arbitration laws and experience tries to point out some of the problems related with: formal requirement of arbitration agreement, the mode and procedure of appointment of arbitrator(s), the issue of the immunity of arbitrator(s), the procedures to conduct oral argument and apply for counter-claim action, recourses against arbitral award, and also the exception to refuse the recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards. Therefore, this thesis so as to rectify these problems using doctrinal research methodology will taste compatibility of Ethiopian arbitration laws in comparison with international arbitration laws and experiences and also will recommend the areas of the laws that should be harmonized towards international arbitration laws and experiences.