PHILIPPINES Law and Practice Contributed by: Ricardo Ma P G Ongkiko, John Christian Joy A Regalado and Ma Patricia B Paz-Jacoba, SyCip Salazar Hernandez & Gatmaitan
a party, with the arbitrators’ approval) may therefore apply to the proper court for a subpoena to assist in the evidence-taking process, as discussed in 8.1 Col- lection and Submission of Evidence .
statement outlining the reason for any omitted sig - nature. The arbitral award shall state the reasons upon which it is based, unless the parties have agreed otherwise or the award is based on agreed terms. The arbitral award shall also state the date of the award and the place of arbitration. Copies of the signed award shall be delivered to each party. Philippine laws do not specify time limits for issuing an award. However, the arbitral tribunal is expected to render a decision within a reasonable timeframe once the hearings have closed and, if an institutional arbitration is involved, within the period provided in the institution’s rules. 10.2 Types of Remedies There are no limits on the types of remedies that an arbitral tribunal may award, as long as they may be granted: • under the rules of law as chosen by the parties to be applicable to the substance of the dispute; • under the rules of law determined by the conflict of laws rules, if the parties have failed to designate the applicable law; • ex aequo et bono or by amiable compositeur, if expressly authorised by the parties; or • under the terms of the contract (in all cases), taking into account the trade usages that apply. However, the arbitral tribunal cannot exceed its authority. Thus, it may not grant any remedy for a dis - pute that is not contemplated by – or does not fall within – the terms of its submission to arbitration. 10.3 Recovering Interest and Legal Costs Philippine laws allow parties to recover their legal costs and interests. The ADR Act’s IRR provide that the arbitral tribunal shall fix the costs of arbitration in its award, which include: • fees of the arbitral tribunal; • travel and other expenses incurred by the arbitra - tors;
9. Confidentiality 9.1 Extent of Confidentiality
The ADR Act provides that arbitration proceedings (including the records, evidence and arbitral award) shall be considered confidential and should not be generally published, except: • with the parties’ consent; or • for the limited purpose of disclosing relevant docu - ments to the court in cases where resorting to court is allowed. However, these exceptions do not include information containing secret processes, developments, research and other sensitive matters (eg, business or trade secrets) if there is evidence that the applicant will be materially prejudiced by authorising the disclosure of such information. Under the Special ADR Rules, any person, counsel or witness who disclosed or who was compelled to disclose information related to the subject of the arbi - tration in circumstances where one might reasonably expect the information to be kept confidential may file a petition with the regional trial court for a protective order to: • prohibit the confidential information from being divulged; or • suppress the confidential information unless writ - ten consent is obtained from the source or the party who made the disclosure.
10. The Award 10.1 Legal Requirements
Philippine law requires the arbitral award to be in writing and signed by either the sole arbitrator or the majority of arbitrators in the arbitral tribunal, with a
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