SPAIN Law and Practice Contributed by: Alfonso López-Ibor, Pablo Henriquez de Luna, Virginia Jover and Pedro Echeguren, Lopez-Ibor DPM
Section 245 of the SCPA allows parties to chal- lenge the amount of the costs to be paid within a period of ten days from when the costs are set, if that party considers the amount to be inap- propriate or excessive. 11.2 Factors Considered When Awarding Costs When awarding costs, the court considers the extent of the upholding or dismissal of the pleas, the complexity of the case and the eventual imprudence of the parties. 11.3 Interest Awarded on Costs Interest awarded on costs is a controversial issue in Spanish jurisdiction. Some courts con- sider that interest is applicable to costs while others disagree. Some authors and case law consider that the decree approving the costs (Article 244.3 SCPA) constitutes an enforceable title. The party that must bear the costs is granted a 20-day period from the date the costs are fixed to voluntarily pay. If it does not, accrued interest will be added to the amount of the costs. 12. Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) 12.1 Views of ADR Within the Country While it is true that over the past few years mediation and other ADR methods have gained popularity with many experts advocating for a wider use, they are still regarded as somewhat “exotic” and not a feasible alternative to tradi- tional court litigation. Arbitration is more common in commercial litiga- tion involving companies.
Aside from mediation, other forms of ADR accepted in Spain and regulated by law are con- ciliation and arbitration. 12.2 ADR Within the Legal System While there are laws that regulate mediation and arbitration, as of today they are not a compul- sory requisite for a subsequent court lawsuit. This entails that parties are free to pursue judicial actions without a prior attempt at ADR. 12.3 ADR Institutions Spain has several institutions that offer and promote ADR. Aside from the Arbitration Tribu- nal of Barcelona, the most relevant are located in Madrid and are focused on arbitration – the European Arbitration Association, Court of Arbi- tration of Madrid (CAM); the Civil and Commer- cial Court of Arbitration (CIMA); and the Spanish Court of Arbitration (CEA). On 16 October 2019, the constitution of the International Arbitration Centre of Madrid (CIAM) was announced. The CIAM is the result of the merger of the international activities of the three most prominent arbitration institutions in Spain – CAM, CIMA and the CEA. As of 1 January 2020, the CIAM is competent to administer two types of international arbitrations arising from new arbitration agreements: firstly, those arising from agreements in which the par- ties directly designate CIAM as the administering court, and secondly, those arising from agree- ments between parties to submit to arbitration administered by CAM, CIMA or the CEA. In 2020, CAM created the Centre of Mediation of Madrid, which is focused on promoting media- tion in Spain.
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