IV Edición Revista Derecho en Sociedad - Ulacit

DERECHO EN SOCIEDAD, N. º 4 . Enero del 2013
Revista electrónica de la Facultad de Derecho, ULACIT – Costa Rica
background. Another reason supporting the collegiate tribunals is the fact that since there
is no right to appeal in arbitration, parties will feel more confident to have three (or more)
persons to hear the case 24 .
On the sole arbitrator supporting line, it comes the practical and handy way of thinking of a
common and normal business man: amount of money that it will be necessary to spend in
the dispute. A sole arbitrator is less expensive, compared to the costs of three arbitrators
(unless that sole arbitrator is one of the ‘big fishes’ of arbitration).
Additionally, those who support the argument in favor of tribunals rest their position in the
fact that collegiate panels are obliged to deliberate, that is, to conduct a series of exchange
of opinions and points of view, which will end or lead to a more elaborated award. In this
same line of thinking, supporters consider that three heads think better than one, and any
decision reached, even in the case there is a dissenter, will be covered with more validity
than the one made by a sole arbitrator.
On the other hand, those who claim for the efficiency behind having a sole arbitrators puts
into the table a legitimacy argument. This goes on the line of having more legitimacy in
award ruled by one person, without any inconsistencies, contradictions, or internal battles.
Than one award made by three arbitrators, three different minds, and three different
styles. The legitimacy factor is even raised, by the fact that the only appointment that has to
be made, the appointment of the sole arbitrator, will be either be done in a consensual
matter, or by a neutral institution, equilibrating each side of the equation.
24 In England an El Salvador appeal is allowed. Article 69 of the British Arbitration Act(1996) deals with the
point of the Appeals on Point of Law, however it leaves parties the faculty to decide to exclude this possibility.
In El Salvador, things tend to be different. The reform of the Arbitration Act which passed in 2009, allowed
the appeals of arbitral awards ruled in law(Art.66-­‐A). The establishment of the appeals brought a lot of
commotion in the juridical and business community, which as a result a constitutional process around the
topic started (process 11-­‐2010) which end up in the declaration of the constitutionality of the reforms. The
author of this paper has express the repudiation of this situation in different public spaces opinions in local
newspapers(LA PRENSA GRAFICA), and conferences organized by El Salvador Chamber of Commerce.
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