FINLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Julia Pekkala, Mikko Leppä, Risto Sandvik and Nuutti Kortelainen, HPP Attorneys Ltd
HPP Attorneys Ltd Bulevardi 1 A FI-00100 Helsinki Finland Tel: +358 9 474 21 Fax: +358 9 474 2222 Email: firstname.lastname@hpp.fi Web: www.hppattorneys.com
1. General 1.1 Prevalence of Arbitration
Other frequently used institutions include the Arbitra - tion Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC) and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). 1.4 National Courts There are no specific arbitration courts in Finland. All matters related to arbitration are heard by the general courts – ie, the District Courts, the Courts of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Finland. Arbitration in Finland is governed by the Finnish Arbi - tration Act (967/1992, as amended – the “Arbitration Act”), which entered into force on 1 December 1992 and governs both international and domestic arbitra - tion without distinction. The Arbitration Act is based on the 1985 version of the UNCITRAL Model Law (“Model Law”), but Finland is not officially a Model Law country. While the Arbitration Act closely reflects the essential provisions of the Model Law, it nevertheless diverges from it in some respects. The most noticeable differ - ence is the possibility for a party to request a final award to be declared null and void without a time limit (see 11.1 Grounds for Appeal ). Another example is that the Arbitration Act, unlike the Model Law, does not include provisions on arbitrators’ powers to order interim measures. 2. Governing Legislation 2.1 Governing Law
Arbitration is a well-established form of dispute reso - lution in Finland. It is frequently used in commercial disputes between domestic parties, and also in dis - putes between Finnish and international parties. In the majority of arbitrations, at least one of the parties is from Finland. Arbitration is often chosen by domestic parties in contracts as the method of dispute resolu - tion. While both institutional arbitration and ad hoc arbitration are used, most arbitrations in Finland are institutional. 1.2 Key Industries Arbitration is a very common method for resolving commercial disputes across all industries, and it is difficult to pinpoint any particular industry that has experienced significantly more arbitration activity in recent years, compared to others. 1.3 Arbitration Institutions The Arbitration Institute of the Finland Chamber of Commerce (FAI) is the leading arbitration institution in Finland. Correspondingly, the most used rules for arbitration are the Arbitration Rules of the Finland Chambers of Commerce (“FAI Rules”); the current rules came into effect on 1 January 2024. FAI is by far the largest arbitration institute in Finland, leaving parties with no other viable domestic alterna - tives. In addition, FAI is favoured for its trustworthi - ness, its efficiency, its rules reflecting best interna - tional practices, and its alignment with both Finnish and international business interests.
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