VIAC and School of Law, CELG-UEH successfully organized the Workshop "The execution of arbitral award and issues arising from the third parties"

 Speakers participating in the seminar

On March 29, 2024, in Ho Chi Minh City, the Vietnam International Arbitration Centre (VIAC) collaborated with the School of Law, College of Economic, Law and Government (CELG), University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH) to successfully organize the seminar titled “The execution of arbitral award and issues arising from the third parties”. The workshop attracted nearly 100 participants in the hall, including many lawyers, lecturers, and enforcement officers, and recorded over 200 attendees online.

 Dr. Duong Kim The Nguyen – Dean of School of Law, College of Economic, Law and Government (CELG), University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH)

Opening the seminar, Dr. Duong Kim The Nguyen – Dean of School of Law, CELG, UEH – gave a welcoming speech. He noted that the enforcement of arbitral awards is always a hot topic in arbitration. Recently, during the process of economic integration, new scenarios and factors have emerged, including the presence of “third parties”, which have created new obstacles in arbitral proceedings, particularly in the enforcement of arbitral awards. Dr. Nguyen analyzed that, in practice, this factor has significantly impacted the time and process of enforcing arbitral awards and may even affect the validity of those arbitral awards. Considering this situation, it is deemed necessary to supplement and amend regulations related to the enforcement of arbitral awards concerning third parties within the framework of Vietnamese arbitration laws.

 Mr. Chau Viet Bac – Deputy Secretary-General of the Vietnam International Arbitration Centre (VIAC)

Representing the Vietnam International Arbitration Centre, Mr. Chau Viet Bac – Deputy Secretary-General of VIAC – also shared the importance of the workshop in researching and discussing ways to facilitate the enforcement of arbitral awards and improve the arbitration laws in Vietnam. The emergence of third parties has a two-way impact on the enforcement of arbitral awards. On the one hand, there are many cases where arbitral awards are obstructed or even unable to be enforced due to the influence of “third parties”. This is because the decisions of the Arbitral Tribunal do not have binding force on parties unrelated to the arbitration agreement. Furthermore, the fact that an arbitral award directly affects the rights and interests of a third party is also a basis for a party to request the annulment of the arbitral award under the Law on Commercial Arbitration 2010 (LCA 2010). On the other hand, the current mechanisms to protect the rights and interests of third parties affected by the content of arbitral awards are still inadequate and do not align with practical demands.

 LLM. Le Hung Long – School of Law, College of Economic, Law and Government (CELG), University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH)

At the workshop, LLM. Le Hung Long – School of Law, College of Economic, Law and Government (CELG), University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH) – discussed the topic “The Involvement of third parties and their impacts on the enforcement of arbitral awards”. According to Mr. Long, the provisions in the Law on Enforcement of Civil Judgments currently do not explicitly recognize or exclude the rights of other parties (besides the disputing parties) with interests or obligations related to the two parties in dispute when filing for enforcement of arbitral awards. However, the regulations in the LCA 2010 completely exclude third parties with interests and obligations related to the enforcement process. Thus, the question arises: should the entities authorized to initiate the enforcement process for arbitral awards be expanded to include parties not bound by the arbitration agreement?

 Mr. Phan Van Thụy – Deputy Head of Professional Department 1, HCMC Department of. Civil Judgement Enforcement

Following the overview of the impact of third parties on the enforcement of arbitral awards by LLM. Le Hung Long, Mr. Phan Van Thuy – Deputy Head of Professional Department 1, HCMC Department of. Civil Judgement Enforcement – provided insights based on enforcement agencies' practices when arbitral award content involves third parties. Mr. Thụy analyzed that the influence of third parties on the enforcement of arbitral awards can be classified into two groups: (i) Agencies, organizations, and individuals cooperating with enforcement agencies to carry out the delivery, verification, and application of enforcement measures under the Law on Enforcement of Civil Judgments; (ii) Agencies, organizations, and individuals with rights and obligations directly related to the enforcement of the rights and obligations of the disputing parties. He cited several difficulties, including a lack of coordinated cooperation among agencies and the limited authority of the Arbitral Tribunal, which lacks coercive power if a third party does not voluntarily cooperate.

 Mr. Nguyen Cong Phu – Former Deputy Chief Judge of the Economic Court, Ho Chi Minh City People's Court, Arbitrator at VIAC

 Continuing the event, Mr. Nguyen Cong Phu – Former Deputy Chief Judge of the Economic Court at the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court, Arbitrator at VIAC – presented the sharings on the topic “Annulment of arbitral awards and issues related to third parties”. Mr. Phu indicated that there are certain limitations in the dispute resolution process through arbitration, including the restricted authority of the Arbitral Tribunal concerning third parties. He emphasized that one situation that can lead to the annulment of an arbitral award is when the content of the Tribunal’s Decision and Reasonings only determines the rights or obligations of the disputing parties, but the exercise of these rights or obligations affects the legal rights and interests of a third party. In such cases, according to the Court’s explanation, the arbitral award violates the fundamental principles of Vietnamese law, falling under the annulment grounds in clause 2, point d, Article 68 of the LCA 2010. Drawing from years of experience working at the Court as well as in arbitration, Mr. Phu suggested that to prevent arbitral awards from being annulled, the Arbitral Tribunal should be more cautious when resolving disputes involving property (including property rights) by requiring the parties to disclose whether the property is mortgaged, leased, or involved in any transactions concerning third parties. Regarding legal regulations, Mr. Phu also proposed adding provisions allowing third parties the right to file a petition to the Court to annul arbitral awards to protect their rights when their interests are infringed.

 Mr. Dang Viet Anh – Managing Partner at ANHISA, Arbitrator of the Vietnam International Arbitration Centre (VIAC), Mediator of Vietnam Mediation Centre (VMC)

At the working, Mr. Dang Viet Anh – Managing Partner at ANHISA, Arbitrator at VIAC, Mediator at VMC – also shared several proposals aimed at improving the legal regulations on arbitration laws concerning third parties. Mr. Anh suggested that the LCA 2010 should refine regulations to verify the validity of arbitral awards. Accordingly, the Court needs to coordinate and support in providing information to the arbitration institutes and the parties involved in cases where a petition to annul an arbitral award is filed. Additionally, he hopes that future versions of the law will establish a mechanism allowing parties whose rights and interests are affected the right to sue or file claims against third parties for non-compliance with arbitral awards in competent courts. This would facilitate the enforcement of arbitral awards and reduce instances of non-cooperation or insufficient cooperation from third parties.

 Overview of the Discussion Session

After the presentations by the experts, the discussion session was dynamic, with numerous questions raised by participants, accompanied by thorough exchanges from experts and guests.

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>>> Event Materials: Please view them HERE

The workshop on "Enforcement of Arbitration Awards and Issues Related to Third Parties" is the second event of the 2024 Arbitration-Mediation Symposium (AMS 2024), organized by VIAC in collaboration with law schools in Ho Chi Minh City. The series ran from March 22, 2024, to April 11, 2024. For detailed information about AMS 2024, please see HERE.