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for a declaration of lack of jurisdiction will not suspend the arbitral proceeding, andtherefore the arbitral tribunal can go forward with its activities.5.5. Place of ArbitrationThe Commerce Code establishes that the parties can freely determine the place of arbitration.If the parties do not state the location, the tribunal may designate it. In any case,if there is no express provision in this respect, the tribunal has the freedom to meet andconduct the proceeding in any place it chooses.5.6. Law Applicable to the ArbitrationThe parties have the power to freely choose the law applicable to the substance of the dispute,and normally they will choose the law that has a relationship to the domicile of theparties and the purpose or nature of the contract. If the parties do not indicate the lawthat will govern the substance of the dispute, then the arbitral tribunal, taking intoaccount the characteristics and connections of the case, will determine the applicable law.5.7. Arbitral ProceedingFirst of all, in the arbitral proceeding the parties must be given equal treatment and eachone must be given full opportunity to assert its rights. The parties have the freedom todetermine the procedure that will be applied to their arbitration. In the absence of anagreement, as already mentioned, the tribunal can carry out the arbitration in the matterit considers appropriate, following the guidelines established in the Commerce Code.In this manner, in an ad hoc arbitration, if the parties have not chosen the arbitral procedure,the tribunal can determine it as it considers appropriate. On the other hand, ininstitutional arbitration the tribunal must follow the rules of procedure established bythe institution before which the arbitration is being carried out.The parties can freely agree on the language to be used in the activities of the arbitration,which will be applicable to all the written briefs submitted by the parties, allthe hearings and any award, decision, or communication issued by the tribunal. In theabsence of such an agreement, the tribunal will determine the languages to be used inits activities.The arbitral activities with respect to a particular dispute will be initiated on the dateon which the respondent has received the request to submit the dispute to arbitration.The guidelines in relation to the arbitral proceeding are the following:a) Within the term agreed by the parties or by the tribunal, the Claimant shall statethe facts on which the claim is based, the disputed matters and the relief it is351Dispute Resolution