Originally from Iura Novit Curia in International Arbitration

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I. INTRODUCTION 

Law 9,307 (Brazilian Arbitration Act) was enacted in 1996 and played a major role in establishing Brazil as an arbitration-friendly jurisdiction.   Even though Brazil has not implemented the UNCITRAL Model Law, the Brazilian Arbitration Act was “inspired” by some of the Model Law provisions.  In December 2001, the Brazilian Arbitration Act was declared constitutional by the Brazilian Supreme Court.  Shortly after, in 2002, Brazil adopted the 1958 New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (New York Convention),  which fostered the development of arbitration in the country. More recently, in 2015, Law 13,129/2015 introduced the first amendments to the Brazilian Arbitration Act.  

Within such legal framework, over the past 20 years, Brazil has become one of the leading countries in Latin America both for domestic  and international arbitrations.  Arbitration under Brazilian law is still booming every day.  Among other factors, some of the main reasons behind the ever-increasing use of arbitration in Brazil are: (i) a modern and liberal Arbitration Act, embracing the most important arbitration principles, such as the principle of competence-competence  and the prohibition to appeal or review the merits of the arbitral award in judicial courts ; (ii) the strong support of the Brazilian Judiciary, particularly the Superior Court of Justice,  the competent court to harmonize the application of federal law in Brazil; (iii) a self-regulated market, with no intervention from the Brazilian government or public authorities and, finally, (iv) a strong, cohesive and active arbitration community, led by the Brazilian Arbitration Committee (CBAr).