Arbitration in the era of (digital) change
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- Published: March 29, 2023
A workshop for legal practitioners was held in Tunis on 25th and 26th February organised by the IRZ and the Research Centre for Dispute Resolution and Enforcement Methods at the Faculty of Law and Political Science at the University of Tunis El Manar (ReLèVe) on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Arbitration Code in Tunisia.
Arbitration for a more efficient legal system
The hybrid workshop was aimed at representatives of the respective institutions, stakeholders in the judiciary, law firms and the legal departments of Tunisian companies. The workshop was a summary of the situation regarding arbitration in Tunisia and Germany which formed the basis of these additional exchanges. Furthermore, the workshop explored topics such as the modernisation and digitisation of arbitration to achieve more efficient case law to bolster the process of reform in Tunisia. Arbitration is of particular importance in the Tunisian judiciary, as it contributes to ease the load and improve the efficiency of the judiciary as an alternative method of dispute resolution.
Challenges and opportunities
Professor Emeritus Mohamed Kamel Charfeddine gave an introductory lecture on the first day of the two-day event, followed by Attorney General Imed Derouiche and his thoughts on how to amend the Arbitration Code in Tunisia. Attorney Dr. Wolfgang Gruber, LL.M. then commented on the situation regarding arbitration in Germany and its development in recent years and decades. Attorney Dr. Rüdiger Morbach also presented his practical experiences on the topic “From electronic arbitration to a digital judiciary”.
On the second day, participants explored the structure of arbitration in Tunisia during a talk by Professor Noureddine Gara. Judge Asma Hasan made suggestions for potential changes. Dr. Rüdiger Morbach spoke about the state actors in arbitration, which then led to the issue of arbitration in terms of justice presented by Mr. Issam Yahyaoui from the District Court of Tunis. Dr. Nader Zaghal from the Faculty of Law at the University of Sfax led the workshop to study the challenges and opportunities in the Tunisian Arbitration Code.
The hybrid event also attracted a number of online attendees, with approx. 15 interested persons in addition to the 60 participants on site. Further events on the topic of alternative dispute resolution will be held in Tunisia in the future.
