Significant Ruling by the District Court on an Application to Set Aside an Arbitral Award

On Friday (31.1.2025), the District Court (President Kizi) delivered its final judgment on an application to set aside an interim arbitral award on a multimillion dispute.

The applicants were a jointventure construction company responsible for the development of a shopping mall, while the respondent was a key subcontractor of the project.

During the proceedings, both arbitrators— a distinguished architect and a renowned quantity surveyor— submitted an appearance and filed an opposition, represented by our team.

In dismissing the application, the Court endorsed the arbitrators’ positions, making the following key findings:

1. When arbitrators seek legal advice for their assistance, such advice is not binding upon them.
2. If arbitrators are not lawyers, they are under no obligation to adopt a legal advice, even if it has been provided by a former AttorneyGeneral of the country.
3. In the event of disagreement between the arbitrators, they may record their dissent in detail and subsequently refer the matter to the umpire, in accordance with the arbitration agreement.

Our firm was honoured to represent the two esteemed engineers and arbitrators in these proceedings.

One team. One purpose. Consistency