PANAMA Law and Practice Contributed by: Jorge Molina Mendoza and Alberto de Urriola Rubio, FABREGA MOLINO
10.6 Powers of the Appellate Court After an Appeal Hearing After hearing an appeal, the appellate court may revoke, confirm or amend the first-instance decision. 11. Costs 11.1 Responsibility for Paying the Costs of Litigation As a general rule, the losing party is responsible for paying the expenses and costs of litigation. Expenses include payment to witnesses for their assistance to, for example, inspections of property; expert witness fees and depository fees in the case of injunctions ( secuestros ). Costs are limited to attorneys’ fees and specific expenses, such as the cost of official certifi- cates. The allocation of costs may be subject to review or appeal. 11.2 Factors Considered When Awarding Costs When awarding costs, the court must consider the following factors: • the work carried out by the lawyer; • the expenses incurred by certain acts, such as expert witness fees; • the value of the certificates and copies presented as evidence; and • the costs that correspond to lawyers’ fees, which are calculated based on the minimum legal fees approved by the Supreme Court. 11.3 Interest Awarded on Costs Interest is awarded on costs. If it is a civil case, the general interest rate is 6%; if it is a commercial case, the rate is 10%. 12. Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) 12.1 Views of ADR Within the Country Panama has a very friendly attitude towards ADR – including mediation. The most popular ADR methods
• Extraordinary appeal: may be filed against judg- ments that have res judicata effect to remedy damages caused to the parties under very specific circumstances. This is reviewed by the Supreme Court. • Revision: may be filed against judgments given in single-instance processes or if an appeal could not be carried out under very specific circumstances. This is reviewed by the Supreme Court. • Consultation: certain judgments, such as those giv- en against the state, must be reviewed by a higher court before the lower court can execute them. 10.2 Rules Concerning Appeals of Judgments An appeal to a higher court may be granted only to the party that believes it has been harmed by the decision. That party must file and substantiate its appeal within five days. The appeal to a higher court is granted by the court that issued the judgment, but the higher court decides on the appeal. 10.3 Procedure for Taking an Appeal The party that considers itself aggrieved by the deci- sion may announce its appeal orally at the time of notification and must then substantiate it within five days. Alternatively, it may announce and substantiate the appeal within five days of notification of the deci- sion it seeks to challenge. After the appeal is substantiated, the other party also has five days to file its opposition to the appeal. 10.4 Issues Considered by the Appeal Court at an Appeal The appeal court may only consider those issues raised by the appealing party, which may be of law or fact. If both parties appealed, the court may decide on all issues related to the case. There will be a review of the first-instance decision, but new points that were not explored at first instance may not be taken at an appeal. 10.5 Court-Imposed Conditions on Granting an Appeal The court may not aggravate the appellant’s position.
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