CANADA Law and Practice Contributed by: Craig Ferris KC, Marko Vesely, Shannon Hayes and Codie Chisholm, Lawson Lundell LLP
12.3 ADR Institutions There are many arbitration institutions and facilities in Canada that support both domestic and international arbitration proceedings. They include the following. • The ADR Institute of Canada Inc (ADRIC). • The Vancouver International Arbitration Cen- tre (VanIAC, formerly BCICAC). • The Canadian International Internet Dispute Resolution Centre (CIIDRC, a division of VanIAC). • The Canadian Arbitration Association (CAA). • The International Centre for Dispute Resolu- tion of Canada (ICDR – Canada). Former judges and senior litigation counsel also act as mediators or arbitrators either individually or through consortiums. 13. Arbitration 13.1 Laws Regarding the Conduct of Arbitration The provinces and territories have statutory schemes for the conduct, recognition and enforcement of domestic and international arbi- tration. In 1986, Canada became the first juris- diction to adopt the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration (the “Model Law”). The statutory regimes largely follow or are con- sistent with the Model Law. 13.2 Subject Matters Not Referred to Arbitration The subject matters that may be arbitrated are largely governed by the arbitration agreement between the parties with some limited excep- tions for consumer issues. Arbitration legislation
in Canada does not provide for class action arbi- tration or group arbitration. 13.3 Circumstances to Challenge an Arbitral Award The statutory regimes allow a party to the arbi- tration to apply to the courts to have the award set aside on specific grounds. However, an application to set aside an arbitral award is not the same as an “appeal” of the judgment in a commercial case. The Model Law limits the grounds on which an arbitral award may be set aside. An arbitral award may be set aside if the applying party proves: • contractual incapacity; • invalidity under the law to which the parties have subjected it; • lack of notice of the arbitral appointment or proceedings, or inability to present the party’s case; • jurisdictional grounds (ie, the award deals with or decides matters beyond the scope of the submission to arbitration); • the composition of the arbitral tribunal or procedure was not in accordance with the parties’ agreement; • the subject matter of the dispute is not capable of settlement by arbitration under the relevant law; or • the arbitral award conflicts with public policy. Parties to an arbitration cannot agree to exclude or expand the scope of the application to set aside the award. 13.4 Procedure for Enforcing Domestic and Foreign Arbitration The statutory regimes provide for the procedures for enforcing arbitration awards issued within the province, another province or territory of Cana- da or internationally. An application is typically
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