Statute

Pursuant to the Statute in force as from September 2, 2019 published in Commercial Gazette No. 168/2019 of September 2, 2019, the Slovak Bar Association, as a self-regulated professional organization and legal person established by Act No. 586/2003 Coll. on Advocacy and on Amending and Supplementing Act No. 455/1991 Coll. on Trade Licenses (the Trade Licensing Act), as amended, is, pursuant to the Fourth Head of the First Part of Act No. 244/2002 Coll. on Arbitration, as amended, the founder of the permanent arbitration court called the Arbitration Court of the Slovak Bar Association, having its seat in Bratislava, Slovak Republic.

The Slovak Bar Association amends and replaces that Statute, which now reads as follows:

Article I
Legal Status and Competence of the Permanent Arbitration Court of the Slovak Bar Association

(1) Arbitration Court. The Slovak Bar Association (the “Association”), as a self-regulated professional organization and legal person established by Act No. 586/2003 Coll. on Advocacy and on Amending and Supplementing Act No. 455/1991 Coll. on Trade Licenses (the Trade Licensing Act), as amended, is, pursuant to the Fourth Head of the First Part of Act No. 244/2002 Coll. on Arbitration, as amended (the “Arbitration Act”), the founder of the permanent arbitration court called the Arbitration Court of the Slovak Bar Association, having its seat in Bratislava, Slovak Republic (the “Arbitration Court”).
(2) Statute. The Association issues this Statute of the Arbitration Court (the “Statute”) pursuant to Section 12 paragraph 2 and Section 13 of the Arbitration Act.
(3) Legal status. The Arbitration Court is an independent organizational branch of the Association and does not have own legal capacity.
(4) Activity. The Arbitration Court conducts arbitrations in the Slovak Republic and makes arbitral decisions pursuant to the Arbitration Act, the Statute, and the Rules of Procedure of the Arbitration Court (the “Rules of Procedure”).
(5) Resolution of disputes. The Arbitration Court decides on disputes through a one or a three member arbitral tribunal in arbitration conducted pursuant to the Arbitration Act, the Statute, the Rules of Procedure, and the parties’ agreement. Arbitration before the Arbitration Court is closed to the public.
(6) Competence. The Arbitration Court decides on disputes that are capable of settlement by arbitration pursuant to Section 1 of the Arbitration Act. The Arbitration Court does not decide on disputes that can only be resolved in consumer arbitration.

Article II
Bodies of the Arbitration Court

(1) The Arbitration Court has the following bodies:
(a) the board of the Arbitration Court (the “Board”),
(b) the president of the Board (the “President”),
(c) the vice president of the Board (the “Vice President”), and
(d) the secretary of the Arbitration Court (the “Secretary”).

Article III
The Board, President, and Vice President

(1) Board. The Board manages the activities of the Arbitration Court, performs duties set out in the Statute, and renders decisions within its competence, except for those that the Statute reserves for the President, arbitrators or the Secretary.
(2) Composition and office term. The Board has five members. The board of the Association elects the Board members for a three year term. A Board member may also be repeatedly re-elected.
(3) Incompatibility of offices. The office of a Board member is incompatible with the mandate of acting as an arbitrator in arbitrations before the Arbitration Court and, except for the case set out in Article IV(5) of the Statute, as the Secretary. A Board member cannot represent a party in arbitration before the Arbitration Court.
(4) Confidentiality obligation. A Board member is obliged, even after his term in office has terminated, to keep all information confidential which he learned when performing this function or in relation to it to the extent set out in Section 8 paragraph 4 of the Arbitration Act.
(5) Termination of office. A Board member’s term in office terminates upon (i) the last day of the office term, (ii) revocation by the board of the Association pursuant to Article III(6) of the Statute, (iii) a Board member’s withdrawal from office effective as of the date of delivery of the withdrawal notice to the Secretary unless such notice provides for a later effective date, (iv) full loss of legal capacity, or (v) death.
(6) Revocation. The board of the Association may only revoke a Board member based on serious grounds. Unless the decision on revocation provides for a later effective date, the revocation is effective on the date of delivery of the decision to the revoked Board member. The board of the Association ensures that the Board is always properly occupied and that the President’s and Vice President’s offices are always occupied.
(7) President. The board of the Association elects the President from among the Board members. The President manages the work of the Board and decides on the following matters:
(a) after having reviewed an arbitrator’s declaration on independence, impartiality, qualification, and acceptance of the appointment of the arbitrator’s mandate (the “Declaration of Independence and Impartiality”) and prospective comments of the parties as to its content, the President confirms the appointment of the nominated person to act as an arbitrator and informs the Secretary of the confirmation; if the President does not confirm the nomination of that person, the President submits the Declaration of Independence and Impartiality to the Board for a final decision under Article III(10)(c) of the Statute,
(b) decides on the acceptance of the arbitrator’s withdrawal from the office under Article IV(7) of the Rules of Procedure; if the President does not accept the withdrawal, he submits it to the Board for a decision under Article III(10)(f) of the Statute,
(c) after the delivery of a statement of claim, the President prima facie assesses the Arbitration Court’s jurisdiction to act and decide on the dispute submitted to the Arbitration Court and acknowledges the acceptance of the dispute to the Secretary together with information as to whether the supplementary rules for resolving selected types of disputes apply to the dispute; if the President does not acknowledge the acceptance of the dispute to the Secretary, he will submit it to the Board for a prima facie assessment under Article III(10)(b) of the Statute and decision on the application of the supplementary rules for resolving selected types of disputes,
(d) if the parties did not agree on the number of arbitrators, the President decides whether the dispute will be decided by a one or a three member arbitral tribunal, whereby he takes into account the complexity and financial value of the asserted claims,
(e) the President confirms the termination of the arbitrator’s mandate by a decision because of (i) the arbitrator’s revocation by a general court, (ii) the arbitrator’s revocation by the Board under Article IV(8) of the Rules of Procedure, or because (iii) the arbitrator no longer satisfies the general requirements for Inscription under Article V(3) of the Statute, and
(f) on termination of a proceeding in the cases set out in Article VI(6)(a) through VI(6)(f) of the Rules of Procedure.
(8) Vice President. The board of Association elects the Vice President from among the Board members. The Vice President represents the President (i) in matters that can suffer no delay and where the President is incapable of performing the office because of health reasons, long-term absence, or busyness, or (ii) in matters which the President authorized.
(9) Meetings and decision-making. The President convenes the Board meetings so that they are held at least once per year and whenever a situation, at the President’s discretion, so requires. The President shall always convene the Board at the Secretary’s request. The Board meetings are held at the seat of the Arbitration Court or at any other convenient location in the Slovak Republic. In justified situations, the Board members may participate in the meetings via telephone or video-conference. The President chairs the Board meetings and approves the minutes of such meetings. The Board meeting has a quorum if it is attended by more than half of the Board members. The Board decides by majority of all votes, except for decisions on the inscribing into and deletion from the list of arbitrators of the Arbitration Court (the “List of Arbitrators”), which requires the consent of all Board members. The Board may also decide per rollam.
(10) Decision-making of the Board. The Board decides, in particular, on the following matters:
(a) decides on the inscribing into or the deletion from the List of Arbitrators,
(b) upon the President’s motion under Article III(7)(c) of the Statute and after the prima facie assessment of the Arbitration Court’s jurisdiction, it decides on the acceptance or refusal of a dispute submitted to the Arbitration Court; the Board will only refuse the dispute if it concludes, after the prima facie assessment, that the Arbitration Court clearly does not have jurisdiction to decide on the submitted dispute; the Board shall notify the Secretary of its decision,
(c) upon the President’s motion under Article III(7)(a) of the Statute, it decides on the acceptance or refusal of an arbitrator or a substitute arbitrator nominated by the party or parties; it shall notify the Secretary of the decision,
(d) on appointing an arbitrator or a substitute arbitrator if (i) a party or parties fail to comply with the time limit for the nomination, (ii) the appointed arbitrators fail to comply with the time limit for the nomination of the presiding arbitrator, (iii) the person nominated by a party or by two arbitrators does not satisfy the qualification criteria agreed by the parties, (iv) the Board refused to confirm the arbitrator nominated by the party, parties, or two arbitrators, or (v) if it is so authorized by the parties’ agreement,
(e) on a challenge of bias against an arbitrator under Article IV(6) of the Rules of Procedure,
(f) upon the President’s motion under Article III(7)(b) of the Statute, the Board decides on the acceptance of the arbitrator’s withdrawal from the office pursuant to Article IV(7) of the Rules of Procedure,
(g) on revocation of an arbitrator or arbitrators pursuant to Article IV(8) of the Rules of Procedure,
(h) on consolidation of multiple arbitrations pursuant to Article II(10) of the Rules of Procedure,
(i) on appointment of an arbitrator for the review of an arbitral award pursuant to Article X of the Rules of Procedure,
(j) on authorizing one of the arbitrators inscribed into the List of Arbitrators to decide on a request to order interim measure before the appointment of an arbitral tribunal as well as on authorizing one of the arbitrators inscribed into the List of Arbitrators to decide on an objection to the ordered interim measure pursuant to Article VII(5) of the Rules of Procedure, and
(k) on the application of the supplementary rules for resolving selected types of disputes, unless the President has decided on this matter pursuant to Article III(7)(c) of the Statute.
(11) Report on activity. The Board submits a report on the Arbitration Court’s activity for the calendar year to the board of the Association by March 31 of the following calendar year.
(12) Education and exams. The Board ensures the education of registered legal trainees and advocates in the field of arbitration.
(13) Preparation of documents. The Board arranges for the preparation and update of standardized documents (e.g. templates of submissions, a template of the Declaration of Independence and Impartiality), guidelines (e.g. on keeping reasonable costs and duration of arbitration), and recommendations (e.g. for the correct assessment of potential conflicts of interests and for impartial taking of evidence).
(14) Cooperation. The Board ensures cooperation with other permanent arbitration courts, foreign arbitration courts, and arbitral institutions, and acts in support of using arbitration as a suitable alternative to general courts and of developing arbitration awareness in the Slovak Republic.

Article IV
Secretary

(1) Supporting role. The Secretary is an organizational and administrative function for the support of the effective operation of the Arbitration Court.
(2) Appointment, revocation, and term of office. The Board appoints and revokes the Secretary. The Secretary term in office is not limited by time.
(3) Duties. The Secretary performs duties resulting from the Statute, the Rules of Procedure, and to which he was entrusted by the Board or President. Within organizational and administrative matters, the Secretary is responsible, in particular, for (i) communication with the parties and third parties, (ii) the Secretariat’s operation, (iii) operation of the Arbitration Court’s website, (iv) preparing and supporting an oral hearing, (v) designating and signing the effectiveness statements on arbitral decisions, (vi) publishing and updating the List of Arbitrators, (vii) publishing and updating the Statute and the Rules of Procedure, (viii) drawing up minutes of the Board meetings and the confirmations on the adoption of a decision outside of the Board meeting, and (ix) preparing the Arbitration Court’s report on activity pursuant to Article III(11). The Secretary determines the value of a dispute for the purposes of determination of the fees of arbitration.
(4) Board meetings. The Secretary prepares the Board meetings, participates in them without voting rights and, at the President’s request, draws up minutes of the Board meetings or, alternatively, confirms the adoption of a decision outside of the Board meeting.
(5) Incompatibility of offices. The office of a Secretary is incompatible with the office of a Board member and the mandate of an arbitrator in arbitration before the Arbitration Court. The Secretary cannot represent a party in arbitration before the Arbitration Court. In case of absence or conflict of interest on the Secretary’s side, the Board may authorize one of the Board members or other suitable person to act as the Secretary in a specific proceeding.
(6) Confidentiality obligation. The Secretary is obliged, even after his office has terminated, to keep all information which he learned when performing his office or in relation to it confidential to the extent set out in Article 8 paragraph 4 of the Arbitration Act.

Article V
Arbitrators

(1) List of Arbitrators. The Arbitration Court maintains a List of Arbitrators and publishes it on its web site. The Board decides on inscription into the List of Arbitrators (“Inscription”) and on the deletion from the List of Arbitrators after having consulted the board of the Association. Arbitrators are inscribed into the List of Arbitrators without time limitation as to the Inscription’s validity.
(2) Conditions for an Inscription. A person may only be inscribed into the List of Arbitrators if he or she satisfies the general and special conditions for Inscription. The Board may set detailed requirements on proving the satisfaction of the conditions for Inscription and may decide to interview the applicant of Inscription in person. There is no legally enforceable right for Inscription.
(3) General conditions. The general conditions for Inscription are full legal age, full legal capacity, and other conditions set out in Section 6 paragraph 1 of the Arbitration Act, and, as the case may be, in other generally applicable laws providing requirements on the capability of a person to become an arbitrator, including requirements on incompatibility of the arbitrator’s mandate with other activities.
(4) Special conditions. The special conditions for Inscription are:
(a) a second-degree university education in law studies from a law faculty at a university in the Slovak Republic or a recognized certificate on a second degree university education in law studies issued by a foreign university,
(b) at least 10 years of legal practice after completing the above-mentioned education or at least 5 years of practice as an advocate in the Slovak Republic or abroad, and
(c) satisfaction of personal prerequisites to perform the mandate of an arbitrator.
(5) Deletion from the List of Arbitrators. The Board, after having consulted the board of the Association, deletes a person from the List of Arbitrator who
(a) no longer satisfies the general conditions for inscription into the List of Arbitrators,
(b) requested the deletion from the List of Arbitrators, or
(c) grossly or repeatedly breached the obligations of arbitrators resulting from the Arbitration Act, the Statute or the Rules of Procedure.

Article VI
Economy and Accounting

(1) The Arbitration Court maintains a separate accounting and financial reporting as a so-called individual unit.

Article VII
Rules of Procedure

(1) The board of Association, after having consulted the Board, adopts and amends the Rules of Procedure governing the conduct of proceedings before the Arbitration Court and other areas referred to in Article 14 of the Arbitration Act.

Article VIII
Costs of Arbitration

(1) Rules on costs. The board of Association, after having consulted the Board, issues rules on costs of arbitration (the “Rules on Costs”) as an integral part of the Rules of Procedure.
(2) Rules on remuneration. Parts of the costs of arbitration are also remuneration of arbitrators and the bodies of the Arbitration Court in relation to arbitration. Details shall be set out in the Arbitration Court’s rules on remuneration of arbitrators and the bodies of the Arbitration Court (the “Rules on Remuneration”), which are adopted and amended by the board of the Association.

Article IX
Final Provisions

(1) Applicability. The parties that agreed to submit their dispute to the Arbitration Court for resolution are subject to the Statute and the Rules of Procedure in force at the time of the commencement of arbitration.
(2) Validity and entry into force. This Statute becomes valid and effective on the date of publication in the Commercial Gazette. As of the date preceding the validity and entry into force of the Statute, the statute in force as from September 2, 2019ceases to be valid and effective, while its provisions apply to arbitration commenced before the validity and effectiveness of the Statute, and the effects of an action taken before the validity and effectiveness of the Statute remain intact.