FINLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Julia Pekkala, Mikko Leppä, Risto Sandvik and Nuutti Kortelainen, HPP Attorneys Ltd
7.2 Procedural Steps The Arbitration Act does not include many procedural rules. It requires only that: • the parties are given sufficient opportunity to pre - sent their case; • the arbitrators shall take into account the require - ments of impartiality and expediency; and • the arbitrators shall promote an appropriate and expedient settlement of the matter. 7.3 Powers and Duties of Arbitrators The Arbitration Act imposes various powers and duties upon arbitrators. As examples of powers, the Arbitration Act gives arbi - trators the power to: • determine the place of arbitration (when the par - ties have not come into agreement on the place of arbitration); • request (not order) the parties to hand over all the documents that may have relevance in the matter; • request that a party, a witness or any other person appear to be heard in the matter; • request a party or any other person in posses - sion of a document or other object that may have relevance as evidence to produce the document or object; and • appoint an expert witness to conduct examina - tions. As examples of duties, the Arbitration Act imposes upon arbitrators the duty to: • determine the language of the arbitration proceed - ings (unless the parties have agreed thereupon); • promote an appropriate and expedient settlement of the matter; • issue an order for the termination of the arbitral proceedings if the parties agree not to continue the arbitration; • decide the dispute in accordance with law, which
7.4 Legal Representatives In Finland, representing a client in court is generally only possible for persons who meet certain qualifi - cations. An attorney-at-law (a member of the Finn - ish Bar Association), a public legal aid attorney or a licensed legal counsel may serve as an attorney or legal counsel in court. However, in arbitral proceed - ings, a party’s legal representative does not have to meet these qualifications, as there are no restrictions concerning representation before an arbitral tribunal. Finnish attorneys-at-law must comply with the Finn - ish Bar Association’s Code of Conduct in arbitral pro - ceedings. In cross-border activities within the EU and the EEA, attorneys-at-law shall primarily observe the Code of Conduct for European attorneys-at-law to the extent the Delegation of the Bar Association has established it to be binding on Finnish attorneys-at- law, and secondarily the domestic Code of Conduct. 8. Evidence 8.1 Collection and Submission of Evidence General In accordance with the overarching principle of party autonomy under Finnish arbitration law, it is for the parties to supply the evidence required to present their case as they see fit. As a starting point, the initiative in respect of evidence is therefore exclusively in the hands of the parties, not the arbitral tribunal. However, the arbitral tribunal has considerable powers – at the request of a party or on its own motion – to request a party to produce documents or any person to appear as a witness (see 8.3 Powers of Compulsion ). Written Evidence and Witness Statements At the outset, the parties are allowed to rely on virtually all kinds of documents to prove their respective cases. As a main rule, there are no limitations as to who can be heard as a witness; for example, employee witness testimony is allowed. The Arbitration Act remains silent on how the exami - nation of witnesses and experts should be conducted. Unlike in Finnish court litigation, written witness state - ments are frequently used in international arbitration proceedings. If the parties agree on using witness
the parties may have designated; and • render the award in writing and sign it.
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