DENMARK Law and Practice Contributed by: Jakob Lentz, Johannes Grove Nielsen, Camilla Hudson and Rasmus Schmidt, Bech-Bruun
claims between the same parties in the same arbi - tration case or the joinder of third parties (see 13.4 Consolidation ). Arbitration cases before the Arbitra - tion Board very often have several parties (see 5.6 Jurisdiction Over Third Parties ). 13.2 Ethical Codes Danish Bar-qualified lawyers acting as legal counsel in arbitration must act in accordance with the ethical codes generally applicable to lawyers. For example, it follows from Section 9 of the Code of Conduct for the Danish Bar and Law Society, dated 1 July 2025, that a lawyer may not act as an arbitrator if they have previously acted for or advised any party as their rep - resentative in matters connected with the dispute at issue. Similarly, after having acted as an arbitrator, the lawyer may not act for or advise any of the par - ties as their representative in matters pertaining to the dispute at issue. 13.3 Third-Party Funding Third-party funding is becoming more normal in Den - mark. There are no general rules or restrictions on third-party funding in arbitration, but there is a duty of disclosure on the funder (see for example Article Whether an arbitral tribunal can consolidate separate arbitral proceedings depends on the parties’ arbitra - tion agreement. Consolidation can only occur if the arbitration agreement covers all of the parties’ claims. Therefore, the defendant can file a counterclaim for consolidation in the same arbitral proceedings only if it is covered by the same arbitration agreement. Provid - ed the arbitration agreement covers the newly made claim, it follows from Section 23 (3) of the DAA that the claim can be made during the course of the arbitral proceedings, unless the arbitral tribunal considers it inappropriate having regard to the delay in making it. If it is agreed that the arbitration will take place at the DIA, consolidation is regulated by Article 15 of the DIA Rules. Upon the request of a party, the DIA’s Chair’s Committee can decide that separate cases should be consolidated. If the counterparty does not agree to the consolidation, the Chair decides after consulting the parties and confirmed arbitrators in the other proceed - 20 (4) of the DIA Rules). 13.4 Consolidation
ings (if any). Under Article 15 (3) of the DIA Rules, the Chair’s Committee must consider all relevant circum - stances, including the mutual connection between the cases and/or the parties and the progress already made in the pending case, in addition to taking the aforementioned hearings into account. The courts cannot decide to consolidate separate arbitral proceedings under Section 4 of the DAA. 13.5 Binding of Third Parties The principal rule of privity of contracts applies in Denmark, meaning that a third party is not bound by an arbitration agreement or an award issued under it unless the third party has signed the agreement or otherwise accepted being bound by it. However, in the case of succession (both universal and singular) where the agreement into which the third party is succeeded contains an arbitration clause, this clause will generally be binding upon the third party. If relevant in a case filed with the national courts, the national courts will interpret the arbitration agreement in order to, inter alia, determine its scope. Should the national courts find that a foreign third party is subject to or bound by the arbitration agreement to the same extent as elaborated in 5. Jurisdiction , the court will bind the third party to the arbitration agreement. Under Article 16 of the DIA Rules, a party in an arbi - tration pending under the Rules may request that a third party join as an additional party in the arbitration and, likewise, a third party may request to join as an additional party in an arbitration pending under the Rules. If the third party and/or a party objects to the request to join the additional party, the arbitral tribunal will decide on the objection, after consultation with the third party and the parties under Article 16 (3) of the DIA Rules. Similarly, the DIA Rules allow the consolidation of arbitration cases pending before the Institute under Article 15.
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