GREECE Trends and Developments Contributed by: John C Dryllerakis, Claire Sergaki and Vasileios Plakoulas, Dryllerakis Law Firm
Construction Arbitration The Greek construction sector experienced notable expansion in 2024, as evidenced by a rise of over 20% in the Construction Production Index, clearly indicating the sector’s continued upward trajectory and strong performance. Arbitration is frequently the preferred method of dispute resolution for construc - tion disputes, which are characterised by technical complexity and require adjudication by specialised arbitrators with industry expertise and awareness of the highly technical details. Arbitration is also the preferred method of dispute resolution, as it can effi - ciently address the wide range of claims from all par - ties involved in such large-scale projects. Contractors, sub-contractors and suppliers often bring claims with respect to delays in payments and/or the provision of material or services, defective works and damages arising therefrom. Consequently, numerous arbitration cases arise, often leading to consolidated proceed - ings involving multiple agreements with identical arbi - Ever since the COVID-19 outbreak, there has been an ongoing trend toward adopting smart technologies to improve the efficiency and quality of dispute reso - lution proceedings by reducing costs and accelerat - ing them. One of the most powerful tools that could reshape the arbitration process is generative AI. tration clauses. AI in Arbitration Arbitral tribunals increasingly use AI tools to automate demanding tasks such as analysing and organising vast amounts of case-related data, structuring and cross-referencing evidence, distilling essential points from lengthy submissions or testimonies and provid - ing real-time support during hearings through auto - mated transcription and multilingual translation ser - vices. The most renowned arbitration institutions have already developed practices to integrate the use of AI. For instance, AI applications are already assisting with the selection of arbitrators in American Arbitration Association (AAA) proceedings through the AAAi Pan - elist Search Tool. The AAA has also launched Clause - Builder AI, an AI chatbot that drafts custom AAA arbi - tration clauses tailored to any case or dispute. Further, the use of AI raises broader concerns about the integrity of the process. Cyberattacks targeting
AI systems, as well as the feeding of AI with falsified evidence, are only a few examples that could compro - mise the fairness and reliability of the outcome. Con - fidentiality concerns also come into play, especially considering that AI is vulnerable to data breaches and unauthorised disclosures. Considering the above pitfalls of AI use in arbitration, some arbitral institutions have actively engaged in the issuance of relevant AI guidelines. For instance, the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC) issued the “Guide to the use of artificial intelligence in cases administered under the SCC rules”, whilst the Silicon Valley Arbitration & Mediation Center (SVAMC) and the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) have issued their own “Guidelines on the Use of Artificial Intel - ligence in Arbitration”. While not issuing AI-specific guidelines, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has published its Report on Leveraging Tech - nology for Fair, Effective and Efficient International Arbitration Proceedings as well as its “Overarching Narrative on Artificial Intelligence” regarding the ethi - cal usage of AI in general. Additionally, the European Parliament and the Euro - pean Council adopted the “Artificial Intelligence Act” (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689), which provides for the regulation of AI systems used in economic activities with a likelihood of causing harm. The activities of arbitrators and the usage of AI by them is classified as a “high-risk” economic activity as per Recital 61, which provides that “AI systems intended to be used by alternative dispute resolution bodies for [the pur - poses of the administration of justice and democratic processes] should also be considered to be high-risk when the outcomes of the alternative dispute resolu - tion proceedings produce legal effects for the parties”. Lastly, the growing use of AI is also expected to give rise to a new wave of disputes. For this reason, the AAA provides for special arbitration clauses for con - tracts that include the “design, development, license, sale or use of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learn - ing, large language model or generative AI systems, tools or products”. In contrast, the Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services (JAMS) has issued its very own specific set of rules governing disputes involving AI systems.
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