Originally from Baker and McKenzie International Arbitration Yearbook 2014-2015

A. LEGISLATION, TRENDS AND TENDENCIES

A.1 Legislation

International arbitration in Poland continues to be governed by the Civil Procedure Code (“CPC”), to which no legislative amendment was made in 2014.

A.2 Trends and Tendencies

In October 2014, the main arbitration court in Poland, the Court of Arbitration at the Polish Chamber of Commerce in Warsaw (“SAKiG”), adopted new rules, which become effective and replace the current rules on January 1, 2015 (the “New Rules”). The New Rules are discussed in Section C below.

B. CASES

During 2014, the Supreme Court in Poland has issued several rulings which may have an impact on practice.

B.1 Grounds for Setting Aside an Arbitral Award

The Polish Civil Procedure Code provides an exhaustive list of the specific grounds for setting aside an arbitral award.3 According to the CPC, the court may only set aside an award where it finds that the relevant dispute is not capable of settlement by a court of arbitration or that an arbitral award is in conflict with the fundamental principles of the legal order of the Republic of Poland. This is known as the public order clause.

In its ruling of March 27, 2013,4 the Supreme Court held that the court adjudicating on any petition to set aside an arbitral award cannot accept grounds for setting aside an arbitral award which are not either contained in the original petition to set aside or otherwise asserted prior to the deadline for filing the petition to set aside.

In this respect, the Supreme Court upheld and strengthened the view, as accepted and consolidated in previous rulings, that it is unacceptable both to cite new grounds for the complaint to set aside an arbitral award after the deadline for filing them has passed, and for the court to take a decision to set aside an award of its own motion.