MALTA Law and Practice Contributed by: Antoine Cremona, Louis Cassar Pullicino, Clement Mifsud-Bonnici and Yasmine Ellul, Ganado Advocates
Ganado Advocates 171 Old Bakery Street VLT 1455 Valletta Malta Tel: +356 2123 5406 Email: lawfirm@ganado.com Web: www.ganado.com
1. General 1.1 Prevalence of Arbitration
On a purely domestic level, litigation remains the predominant method of dispute resolution in Malta amongst local market players. Litigation costs in Malta are generally low and, in domestic disputes, arbitra - tion, despite a discernible upward trend, has not yet managed to break through as the prevalent method The use of arbitration in Malta has been increasing steadily. In particular, due to the increased number of large-scale infrastructure projects, the construction industry has seen a significant increase in arbitration, especially since International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) contracts have become the preva - lent construction contract in Malta for medium-to- large-scale developments. Accordingly, a number of claims are arbitrated. Arbitration clauses are increas - ingly being incorporated in contracts which are the subject of public procurement processes with public authorities, clearly indicating to the market the prefer - ence for disputes being referred to arbitration. of dispute resolution. 1.2 Key Industries Moreover, a marked increase in arbitrations relating to areas which were hitherto the exclusive domain of the Maltese courts has been witnessed. This includes shareholder disputes and certain intellectual property disputes, largely due to the flexibility afforded by arbi - tration as well as an expert’s focus on the subject matter. 1.3 Arbitration Institutions The Malta Arbitration Centre (the “MAC” or the “Cen - tre”) is the principal institution that oversees the con - duct of domestic arbitrations and an ever-increasing
Arbitration is a frequently used and broadly accepted method of dispute resolution in Malta for both general and sector-specific commercial disputes. It is particu - larly prevalent in certain sectors such as construction, maritime, and information technology, where most domestic parties engaged in international contracts have recourse to institutional or ad hoc international arbitrations as the preferred method of dispute reso - lution. Arbitration clauses also feature regularly on a more generic level across various other industries. Institutional arbitration clauses are increasingly fea - tured in commercial contracts governed by Maltese law or involving a Malta-based entity. There has been a discernible uptake in the use of international arbitration in relation to contracts involv - ing public and private entities, shipping, insurance, as well as financial services disputes. Various factors, such as the geographical location, legal framework, and cost-to-quality ratio, may incentivise parties to resort to arbitration as opposed to court litigation in Malta. The principal advantages of arbitration in Malta are the flexibility of procedure, the value added brought by arbitrators, as well as the relative ease of the enforce - ability of awards. With some notable exceptions in judgments that are widely regarded as outliers, the jurisdiction is generally supportive of arbitration, and the courts have extensive powers of support (includ - ing interim relief) for both domestic and international arbitrations having their seat in Malta.
491 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook