CYPRUS Law and Practice Contributed by: Kyriacos Scordis, Alexandros Gavrielides, Chara Pieri and Demetris Yiannakou, Scordis, Papapetrou & Co LLC
11.2 Factors Considered When Awarding Costs When awarding costs, the courts may consider a number of factors, including the conduct of the parties before and during the proceedings, the complexity and/or novelty of the legal issues raised, the outcome of the proceedings and whether the successful party overstated its claim or otherwise caused unnecessary costs. 11.3 Interest Awarded on Costs Legal interest is awarded on cost. The rate of the legal interest is fixed by a decree of the Minister of Finance. The current rate is 5.5%. 12. Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) 12.1 Views of ADR Within the Country ADR methods, particularly arbitration and mediation, have been used more widely in recent years due to their advantages over traditional litigation. Cypriot legal practitioners, professionals and businesses are constantly encouraging the use of ADR with the aim of shifting the focus in line with international trends where ADR is seen as a valuable alternative to lengthy and costly court procedures. 12.2 ADR Within the Legal System The courts in Cyprus have repeatedly expressed support for ADR and encourage parties to consider arbitration and mediation before pursuing litigation. A party cannot be compelled to pursue ADR or penal- ised for failing to do so, but may be required to con- sider ADR; court proceedings may also be stayed for a reasonable period in order to enable the parties to make efforts to settle the case by ADR. 12.3 ADR Institutions Institutions offering and promoting ADR in Cyprus are generally well organised and actively contribute to the development of ADR mechanisms. Most of these institutions, including the Cyprus Arbitration and Mediation Centre and the Cyprus Eurasia Dis- pute Resolution and Arbitration Centre, offer training programmes and certification courses for arbitrators and mediators, and promote ADR through forums and
seminars where leading global practitioners gather to share their valuable insights and views on ADR.
13. Arbitration 13.1 Laws Regarding the Conduct of Arbitration
In Cyprus, the conduct of arbitrations and the recogni- tion of enforcement of arbitral awards are governed by the Arbitration Law, Chapter 4 (“Chapter 4”), which applies to arbitrations between Cypriot parties, and the International Commercial Arbitration Law 1987 (ICAL), which is based on the UNCITRAL Model Law and applies exclusively to international commercial arbitrations. 13.2 Subject Matters Not Referred to Arbitration Criminal matters, disputes with public policy implica- tions and matters of personal status, such as divorce and disputes affecting minors, are considered non- arbitrable in Cyprus. 13.3 Circumstances to Challenge an Arbitral Award In accordance with the ICAL, an arbitral award may be challenged (and set aside) within three months from the date on which the party making the application received the award on the following grounds: • one of the parties in the arbitration agreement lacked contractual capacity, or the arbitration agreement was not valid according to the govern- ing law; • one of the challenging parties in the arbitration was not given proper notice in relation to the appoint- ment of an arbitrator or the arbitration proceedings, or was deprived of the rights to present its case; • the composition of the tribunal or the whole arbitral process was in violation of what had been agreed by the parties; • the subject matter of the dispute is not arbitrable under Cypriot law; or • the award does not comply with the Cypriot public order.
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