SENEGAL Law and Practice Contributed by: Aboubacar Fall, AF Legal
In domestic court proceedings, to represent a party before the Senegalese courts, legal representatives must generally be lawyers registered with the Sen - egalese bar. In domestic arbitration, proceedings are more flexible: • parties are free to choose their representatives, who do not necessarily need to be lawyers regis - tered with the Senegalese Bar; and • representatives may be legal advisors, experts, or any other persons authorised by the party. In international arbitration, the parties may be repre - sented by foreign lawyers, international legal advisors, or any other representatives of their choice, without restriction based on nationality or registration with a local bar association. 8. Evidence 8.1 Collection and Submission of Evidence No content provided in this jurisdiction. 8.2 Rules of Evidence In Senegal, the rules of evidence in arbitration pro - ceedings generally differ from those applied in domes - tic court cases. The AUA gives the arbitral tribunal considerable free - dom with regard to the admission, collection, and assessment of evidence. It does not impose strict, codified rules of evidence as in traditional court pro - ceedings. The arbitral tribunal may assess the evi - dence according to the principles of fairness and loyalty, with free evaluation. The parties are generally invited to produce all relevant evidence to support their claims, in written or oral form. Unlike domestic proceedings, where the rules of evi - dence are often rigid (eg, written evidence is required for certain acts), evidence in arbitration is more flex - ible. The arbitrator may accept evidence that would sometimes be inadmissible in court (such as certain testimony, electronic documents, or informal expert opinions). There is no automatic application of strict
procedural rules (eg, modes of evidence, deadlines for production, or presumptions). The parties may agree on specific rules of evidence or adopt the rules provided by an arbitral institution. Some institutions impose more detailed frameworks for the production of evidence, the filing of briefs, etc. 8.3 Powers of Compulsion In Senegal, arbitrators do not have direct powers of compulsion, but may request the assistance of state courts to carry out certain investigative measures. Arbitrators may request a party to produce documents or call a witness, but without the power of coercion. If they encounter a refusal (to produce documents or appear), they must apply to a competent state court to obtain this measure. Article 14 of the AUA provides that “[t]he arbitral tri - bunal may request the competent court to take any investigative measures that it cannot itself order or enforce”. This includes, in particular: • hearing reluctant witnesses (by subpoena); • access to documents held by a third party; • seizure of documents; and • order for compulsory disclosure. Difference Between Parties and Non-Parties Parties to the arbitration are bound by the arbitration agreement and required to co-operate in the proceed - ings; their refusal to co-operate may be taken into account in the decision on the merits (eg, adverse inference). Third parties are not bound by the arbi - tration agreement; their co-operation can only be enforced through the courts, at the request of the arbitral tribunal. Practical Limitations Seeking judicial assistance from the courts may slow down the proceedings. The judge’s co-opera - tion depends on the compatibility of the measures requested with Senegalese public policy and the rules of civil procedure.
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