with regard to determining the applicable law, appeals and the admissibility of the so-called amicable settlement. In international commercial relations arbitration is nowadays a fundamental way of settling disputes (it is estimated that around 90% of international trade contracts contain arbitration agreements), and in some sectors of activity, such as civil aviation, it is even the normal way of settling such disputes. This "success" of arbitration is easily explained by several factors, usually assumed as the advantages of resorting to an alternative form of dispute resolution. 2.8 The arbitration procedure In arbitration, the parties to a contract have great freedom to establish, a priori, the rules by which the arbitration process will take place. But the most common thing is for the parties to opt for an existing international institution, with its own regulations, as it is the case of the arbitration tribunals. In general, and with minor adaptations and fuctuations, an arbitration procedure comprises the following phases: i. The proceedings commence with a request for arbitration submitted by the Claimant to the Secretariat of the Court; ii. The Respondent, like the Claimant, is notifed of the fling of the Request for Arbitration and of the date on which it was fled. That date shall be deemed to be the date, for all purposes, of the commencement of the arbitration; iii. The Secretariat shall request the parties to make an advance payment of the costs of the arbitration; iv. In the Request for Arbitration, in addition to other data, the Claimant shall formulate the request; v. Generally, within 30 days of the notifcation of the claim, the Defendant may fle a response and may also fle a counterclaim; vi. The time-limits for reply may be extended by the Court of First Instance having regard to the specifc difculty of the case; vii. Should a party refuse or refrain from participating in the arbitration at any time during the arbitral proceedings, the arbitration shall proceed irrespective of the refusal or refraining; viii. The number of arbitrators shall be a single arbitrator or three, depending on what the parties have agreed, in the latter case, each party shall nominate one arbitrator and the third shall be appointed by the court. ix. The Arbitral Tribunal shall then summon the parties to draw up and sign the Minutes which shall include, amongst other matters, the full identifcation of the parties, the location of the Arbitral Tribunal, a summary of the claim and defence, and specifc aspects relating to the arbitration proceedings; x. The proceedings shall continue with the presentation and production of evidence, followed by the necessary discussion of the case; xi. The Arbitration Tribunal shall make the fnal award, which shall be notifed to the parties; xii. They may also ask the Court for formal corrections or for help in interpreting the fnal judgment; xiii. There is no appeal from the fnal award, but an action for annulment is 6
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