Right to be heard as a part of due process of law in arbitration proceedings: current challenges and lessons for Ukraine

Abstract

International commercial arbitration as a type of alternative dispute resolution is gaining popularity quite rapidly and its use is not the result of a lack of trust in national courts, but a desire to resolve a dispute as soon as possible with the least amount of time and the ability to manage the process independently. This can be considered one of the most important reasons for choosing arbitration, as the events of the last 5 years in the world (such as the Pandemic, Climate change) have demonstrated to everyone the importance of prompt communication and, as a result, the importance of introducing various forms of arbitration proceedings. Such forms include direct (traditional) consideration of the case in the arbitration courtroom, online and hybrid forms. And in this aspect, a fairly reasonable question arises as to whether such forms of arbitration proceedings comply with the due process of law. The article will analyze the doctrinal approaches of both Ukrainian and foreign legal schools and examples of the law enforcement practice of national courts on this problematic issue. In addition, the article will analyze the Ukrainian legislation on the compliance of arbitration proceedings with due process of law and propose amendments to the current legislation. The article consists of 3 main parts which are logically interrelated and methodologically structured. The first part is devoted to the analysis of the main approaches to due process of law, which is revealed through the prism of comparative legal analysis of doctrinal concepts and analysis of law enforcement practice of national and arbitration courts. The second part reveals the essence of such a structural element of the due process of law in arbitration proceedings as the right to be heard, which plays a key role not only in the course of international commercial arbitration proceedings, but also in the procedure for recognition and enforcement of international commercial arbitration awards by national courts. The last section reveals the peculiarities of due process in virtual arbitration as a specific mechanism of alternative dispute resolution. Using a comparative legal analysis of arbitration practice and the current rules of the leading arbitration institutions, the author concludes that the introduction of online mechanisms in arbitration proceedings is effective.