New Brazilian Arbitration Act: The Main Changes and The New Scenario - WAMR 2015 Vol. 9, No. 3

Even though it is undisputable that arbitration is a widely accepted and efficient dispute resolution method in Brazil, worthy of credibility and extensively applied in the national and international scenarios, in May 26, 2015, the Brazilian Congress passed Law No. 13,129/2015 (“New Arbitration Act”), in force since July 27, 2015, that significantly improved some of the concepts and provisions of the existing Law No. 9,307/96 (“Brazilian Arbitration Act”), the former enacted almost 20 years ago.

The New Arbitration Act, however, does not entirely revoke or drastically change the structure of Brazilian Arbitration Act, nor does it change the way arbitration operates in Brazil. The new law is basically intended and expected to recognize statutorily some interpretations already consolidated by doctrine and case law, thereby strengthening the legal certainty in and efficiency of arbitration in Brazil.

II. BRIEF HISTORY OF ARBITRATION IN BRAZIL

In Brazil, as in many places, arbitration as a dispute resolution mechanism has had continuous development. Since its early beginnings when arbitration in Brazil was rarely considered because the then existing law demanded arbitral awards of all kinds, either foreign or domestic, to be first recognized by a State court to be effective and enforceable,3 Brazil has achieved an impressive level of arbitral maturity on an expedited basis.

Since 1996 Brazil has given arbitration proper legal regulation and arbitration has proven to be a useful, strategic, and efficient method of dispute resolution in the context of domestic and international business transactions.