RULES FOR
CONCILIATION OF THE COURT OF ARBITRATION AT
THE BULGARIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
| A settlement is a desirable means of resolution of private law disputes. In order to facilitate out-of-court and out-of-arbitration resolution of such disputes the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry has made available these Rules of Conciliation. |
| Art. 1. | (1) The scope of conciliation under these Rules shall involve domestic and
international disputes of a private law nature whenever a settlement is possible. (2) The existence of pending court or arbitration proceedings concerning such disputes shall not constitute an obstacle for the commencement of conciliation proceedings in accordance with these Rules. |
| Art. 2. | (1) The conciliation proceedings shall commence upon a mutual agreement of the parties
on the dispute or upon a request made by one of them. (2) The parties shall apply to the Secretariat of the Court of Arbitration at the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry by filing a request in three copies for the commencement of conciliation. In their request they shall set out in brief the subject matter of their dispute, presenting their opinions thereof. They shall pay a charge for the commencement of conciliation proceedings as indicated in the Tariff to these Rules. (3) When the request for conciliation is filed by one of the parties the Secretariat of the Court of Arbitration shall immediately serve a copy of this request on the other party, giving it a 15 day period from the receipt of the notice to state whether it agrees or declines to take part in the conciliation. In the case of a decline or in the absence of a reply no conciliation proceeding shall commence. The Secretariat shall inform the applicant about that and shall refund to the latter 50% of the deposited charge. (4) If the other party agrees to participate in the conciliation, it shall inform the Secretariat about its decision in writing. The Secretariat shall open a conciliation proceeding and immediately shall send a copy of the statement of the applicant to the agreeing party. (5) Following the opening of the conciliation proceeding the. President of the Court of Arbitration shall determine an advance deposit for expenses which shall be paid by the parties in equal shares within a specified time limit If one of the parties fails to. pay its share of the expenses but is willing to take part in the attempt for conciliation, the other party may pay the other half of the deposit as well. In case of failure for payment of the full amount of the advance deposit for expenses, the conciliation process shal be terminated and the parties shall be informed about it in due time. |
| Art. 3. | (1) Unless the parties have agreed on a conciliator, the President of the Court of
Arbitration shall appoint a neutral conciliator, taking into consideration the nature of
the dispute and the qualification of the conciliator. The Secretariat shall accordingly
inform the conciliator and the parties and shall specify a time limit for the parties
within which to substantiate their opinions. (2) Accepting the appointment, the conciliator shall submit to the Secretariat and to the parties in the conciliation proceeding a written statement of independence and impartiality in conducting the conciliation, as well as of confidentiality concerning the facts and circumstances which would become known to him/her in this connection. (3) Unless agreed upon by the parties, the conciliator shall not be an arbitrator, representative or advisor to any of them in arbitration proceedings related to the same dispute. (4) Unless a consent is reached, the parties shall be obliged not to summons the conciliator as a witness in a state court or arbitration proceeding on the dispute which is the object of the conciliation, (5) If the conciliator passes away, declines the appointment or fails to do his/her duty, he/she shall be replaced by another conciliator following the procedure of para (1) above. |
| Art. 4. | (1) To elucidate the disputed circumstances and for discussion of possible concessions
which any of the parties may be inclined to make in view of an amicable settlement of the
dispute, the conciliator shall be able to meet with each of the parties separately, prior
to inviting them for a joint discussion of the possible variants for conciliation. The
Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry shall offer premises for meetings between the
conciliator and the parties free of charge. (2) In the propositions for a possible settlement, the conciliator shall be guided by the facts, the applicable law and justice. (3) The parties shall participate in the conciliation proceedings in person or through duly authorized representatives. They may also be assisted by advisors. Third parties may be present at the meetings with the conciliator only with the consent of the parties. (4) If the attempt for conciliation is successful, the settlement reached shall be signed by the parties and the conciliator. One copy of the settlement shall be attached to the conciliation file as well. (5) When the settlement is reached in a dispute on a pending case before the Court of Arbitration at the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the parties may request the settlement concluded by them to be reproduced into an arbitration award under agreed upon terms and conditions. (6) The parties shall agree not to use as evidence before a state court or arbitration proceedings the following arguments:
|
CONCLUSION OF CONCILIATION PROCEEDINGS
| Art. 5. | (1) The attempt to conciliate shall be concluded upon:
(2) The existence of a conciliation procedure before other institutions or bodies shall not prevent any conciliation attempt under these Rules. |
CONCILIATION PROCEEDING EXPENSES
| Art. 6. | (1) The conciliation proceeding expenses shall include:
(2) Conciliation expenses shall be borne equally by the parties, unless otherwise provided for by the settlement. (3) Except the expenses as per para (1) above, each of the parties shall bear its other expenses incurred in connection with the conciliation. (4) The fee of the conciliator shall be fixed by the President of the Court of Arbitration at the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, who shall be guided by the nature of the dispute and the time used by the conciliator. The President may request the opinions of the parties as well. |
TARIFF OF CONCILIATION CHARGES AND
EXPENSES
These Rules were adopted by the Executive Council of BCCI by Minutes No. 22/5-99 of 12.05.1999 and by decision of the Management Board of BCCI of 16.12.1998 in relation to art. 22, para 1, item 8 of the Statute of BCCI.
These Rules shall be effective as from 5 July 1999.