ECUADOR Law and Practice Contributed by: Oswaldo Santos Dávalos and Bernarda Haro Aillón, Santos Burbano de Lara
Requirements and Competence Article 15 of the RLAM requires only a certified copy of the award. Article 14 of the RLAM confers compe - tence on the civil court of first instance of the domicile of the debtor or of the place where the debtor’s assets are located. Opposition and Awards Set Aside at the Seat The debtor may resist enforcement mainly by show - ing the award has been complied with in full. Other grounds for resisting enforcement, according to the RLAM, are the suspension of the award by competent authority or that the award has been set aside. Hence, an annulment action pending at the seat does not of itself suspend enforcement. There does not appear to be any cases of enforcement of awards set aside at the seat of the arbitration. Sovereign Immunity Defences Ecuadorian public entities do not raise immunity defences against the enforcement of awards; pay - ment is subject to the budgetary rules applicable to State obligations. There is no specific legislation on the immunity of foreign states from enforcement of awards. The draft reform described in 2.2 Changes to National La w would alter the competence regime for enforce - ment. 12.3 Approach of the Courts The courts adopt an approach favourable to recogni - tion and enforcement. There is no public-policy review. Public policy is not among the grounds for annulment in Article 31 of the LAM, nor among the grounds for opposing enforcement in Article 15 of the RLAM. The enforcement judge does not undertake the examina - tion provided for in Article V(2) of the NYC since the local regime is more favourable than the NYC. Excluded Avenues of Challenge In judgments 308-14-EP/20 and 481-14-EP/20, the Constitutional Court held that ordinary protection actions (not to be confused with EPAs) against arbitral decisions are inadmissible, since ordinary protection actions are not applicable in the case of jurisdictional decisions.
In judgment 74-21-IN/25, the Constitutional Court dis - missed the unconstitutionality actions directed against Article 15 of the RLAM that refers to the grounds to resist the enforcement of international awards. Arti - cle 15 (4) of the RLAM provides that no judge shall admit any action whose object is to delay, obstruct or impede the enforcement of an international award. 13. Miscellaneous 13.1 Class Action or Group Arbitration The Ecuadorian legal system does not regulate col - lective or class arbitration, and there is no practice to that effect. Moreover, the Constitution appears to prohibit class actions. Articles 1 and 5 of the LAM require an arbitration agreement and a matter capable of settlement. No provision empowers an arbitral tribunal to decide on behalf of absent members of a group. Article 6 of the RLAM allows non-signatories to be bound by consent derived from good faith, not by collective representa - tion, as indicated in 5.6 Jurisdiction Over Third Par- ties . Collective actions before the courts are limited and concentrated in diffuse rights, environmental matters and consumer protection, areas in which arbitrabil - ity is debatable given the settlement requirement described in 3.2 Arbitrability . 13.2 Ethical Codes There is no single code of ethics applicable to arbitra - tion. The regime combines general professional rules and institutional codes. Some centres have their own rules of conduct. The standards applicable to arbitrators are described in 4.4 Challenge and Removal of Arbitrator s and 4.5 Arbitrator Requirements . Lawyers Lawyers’ conduct is governed by the COFJ, spe - cifically in Articles 330 and 335, which establish the duties and prohibitions in professional practice. There is also the Code of Professional Ethics approved in 1969 by the National Lawyers’ Federation of Ecuador.
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