DENMARK Law and Practice Contributed by: Thomas Norvold, Søren Locher, Anne Mie Lund and Pawel Weigel, Fabritius Tengnagel & Heine
tion Board, the latter of which is a sector-specific institution that handles disputes within the field of building and construction. It is common in this legal area to include ADR clauses in agreements. The DIA is a non-sector-specific institution that handles various types of disputes. 13. Arbitration 13.1 Laws Regarding the Conduct of Arbitration The Danish Arbitration Act is the primary legisla- tion in Denmark governing arbitration, providing the framework for arbitration in the country. It is largely based on the 1985 UNCITRAL Model Law. Denmark has acceded to the New York Conven- tion of 1958, concerning the mutual recognition and enforcement of arbitration awards. The Danish Arbitration Act includes an exhaus- tive list of grounds that can lead to the refusal of recognition or enforcement; see 13.3 Circum- stances to Challenge an Arbitral Award . 13.2 Subject Matters Not Referred to Arbitration The primary rule is that parties can agree to arbi- tration for all civil matters over which they legally have the freedom to dispose. Matters that par- ties cannot agree upon (in dispositive matters) cannot be subject to arbitration. Arbitration can be agreed upon for disputes that have already arisen or for future disputes aris- ing from a specific legal relationship within or outside of a contractual relationship. In cases involving consumer agreements, an arbitration
agreement entered into before the dispute arises is not binding on the consumer. 13.3 Circumstances to Challenge an Arbitral Award According to the Danish Arbitration Act, an arbi- tral award can be set aside if the party request- ing this can prove that: • one of the parties to the arbitration agree- ment lacked legal capacity under the law of the country where they had their domicile at the time of entering into the agreement, or the arbitration agreement is invalid accord- ing to the law chosen by the parties or, in the absence of such choice, according to Danish law; • the party requesting the setting aside did not receive proper notice of the appointment of an arbitrator or the proceedings of the arbitra- tion, or was unable to present their case for other reasons; • the arbitral award deals with a dispute not covered by the arbitration agreement or decides on issues outside of the scope of the arbitration agreement; or • the composition of the arbitral tribunal or the conduct of the arbitration proceedings was not in accordance with the agreement of the parties or the Danish Arbitration Act. In addition, an arbitral award can be set aside if the court finds that: • the nature of the dispute is such that it cannot be resolved through arbitration; or • the arbitral award is manifestly incompatible with the Danish legal order.
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