PANAMA Law and Practice Contributed by: Jorge Molina Mendoza and Alberto de Urriola Rubio, FABREGA MOLINO
11.2 Excluding/Expanding the Scope of Appeal It is not possible to exclude/expand the scope of appeal or challenge under national law. Award annul - ment rules are not subject to party autonomy and free negotiation. 11.3 Standard of Judicial Review The standard of judicial review is established by law. In the case of Panama, it is deferential since the pow - ers of the Fourth Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice are limited to examining the validity or nullity of the award without being able to review the merits of the matter. Panama has signed the 1958 New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards without reserves. Additionally, it has ratified the Inter-American Convention on International Com - mercial Arbitration, which was approved by Panama on 30 January 1975. 12.2 Enforcement Procedure The execution of an award corresponds to the ordi - nary courts of justice under the procedure established for the execution of final judicial sentences. There is an express cause to deny the recognition of an award that has been annulled or suspended by a court of the country in which or according to whose law that award has been rendered. In the case of a pending annulment process, execution of the award must be rejected. A state cannot invoke its immunity preroga - tive to evade the obligations required by the arbitration agreement. 12. Enforcement of an Award 12.1 New York Convention
12.3 Approach of the Courts A court in Panama would only reject the recognition and execution of an arbitral award if it is proven that the cause was not arbitrable or that the award is con - trary to international public order. 13. Miscellaneous 13.1 Class Action or Group Arbitration Legislation in Panama does not provide for arbitration in class actions. 13.2 Ethical Codes In Panama, the Arbitration Law indicates that persons who have seriously violated the Code of Ethics of the arbitration institution, or who are criminally liable for crimes of prevarication, falsehood or fraud, cannot be arbitrators. 13.3 Third-Party Funding The Arbitration Law in Panama does not provide rules on third-party funders, and it does not prohibit third- party funding. 13.4 Consolidation It is not allowed under general rules in Panama that arbitration clauses are enforceable only to the signing parties. 13.5 Binding of Third Parties Bringing third parties into an arbitration process is not prohibited by law. In fact, the jurisprudence of the Fourth Chamber of General Business of the Supreme Court of Justice has recognised awards against third parties brought into arbitration due to having some relation or link to the cause. The third party can be brought into the process at the beginning, before the case is fixed.
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