{"id":314498,"date":"2025-07-17T09:17:40","date_gmt":"2025-07-17T07:17:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tab.es\/?p=314498"},"modified":"2025-07-17T09:17:57","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T07:17:57","slug":"unjustified-concerns-about-arbitration-josep-maria-julia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/unjustified-concerns-about-arbitration-josep-maria-julia\/","title":{"rendered":"Unjustified Concerns About Arbitration, Josep Maria Juli\u00e0"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ custom_padding=”0px||0px|||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”4.20.2″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” min_height=”3709.3px” custom_margin=”|auto|-525px|67px||” custom_padding=”||0px|0px||” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” pac_dcm_carousel_specific_module_num=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” min_height=”564.1px” custom_margin=”|-61px||||” custom_padding=”|0px|0px|0px||” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”]<\/p>\n

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The TSJM\u2019s concerns about the supervision of the application of European Union competition law in arbitration seem unjustified\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

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As a result of the Spanish Constitutional Court\u2019s annulment[1]<\/span><\/a> of a judgment by the Superior Court of Justice of Madrid (\u201cTSJM\u201d),[2]<\/span><\/a> which had in turn annulled an arbitral award that invalidated an exclusivity clause in the Cabify case, the TSJM[3]<\/span><\/a> has submitted a preliminary question to the Court of Justice of the European Union (\u201cCJEU\u201d) to clarify whether limited review of arbitral awards, even in cases of infringement of public policy, might infringe the principles of primacy and effectiveness of European Union law.<\/p>\n

The TSJM\u2019s concerns about the supervision of the application of European Union competition law in arbitration seem unjustified for several reasons:<\/p>\n

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  1. Despite the opinions of the Advocates General in the hydrogen peroxide cartel and Genentech cases,[4]<\/span><\/a> the CJEU\u2019s judgments in those very cases never questioned the validity of limited arbitral award review.[5]<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n
  2. The CJEU\u2019s ruling in the International Skating Union case[6]<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/a> cannot be automatically applied to voluntary commercial arbitration. The CJEU\u2019s decision in that case is explained by the fact that the international sports arbitration in question was compulsory, in which case all guarantees of due process must be applied as established by the European Court of Human Rights in the Pechstein case.[7]<\/span><\/a> The imposition of an arbitration clause by a dominant operator, as well as its dual role as regulator and market operator, are peculiar factors in certain areas of international sports arbitration that do not affect ordinary arbitration.<\/li>\n
  3. The award resolves only a dispute between private parties, and any incorrect application of competition law in arbitration does not create a binding precedent that affects third parties.[8]<\/span><\/a> Nothing prevents third parties, authorities, and courts from revising incorrect determinations of an arbitral award\u2014even if final and with res judicata effects\u2014regarding the application of competition law. The CJEU did not consider the limited and private effect of the award in the International Skating Union case because the ISU, as a dominant operator and governing body of skating at the international level, had the power to enforce its decisions in practice without the need for intervention from authorities or courts.<\/li>\n
  4. It would be contradictory and incomprehensible for the European Union to be seriously concerned about a private award with limited effects, while the Brussels I Regulation itself allows for the circulation and mandatory recognition of court judgments that incorrectly apply EU competition law. [9]<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Arbitrators not only have the duty to apply EU competition law but also play a significant role in ensuring its effective enforcement, both in ordinary commercial arbitration and in arbitrations specifically designed to remedy potential anticompetitive effects in merger cases and infringement proceedings. As the CJEU did in the Eco Swiss, Mostaza Claro, and Achmea cases, it would be desirable for the CJEU to reaffirm its confidence in the application of EU competition law by arbitrators without undermining the private and extrajudicial nature of voluntary commercial arbitration.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Josep Maria Juli\u00e0, abogado and arbitrator, Delegaltessen<\/p>\n

    TAB delegertier in Madrid<\/p>\n

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    [1]<\/span><\/a> \u00a0\u00a0 Judgment 146\/2024 of 2 December (ECLI:ES:TC:2024:146).<\/p>\n

    [2]<\/span><\/a> \u00a0\u00a0 Judgment 66\/2021 of 22 October (ECLI:ES:TSJM:2021:9028).<\/p>\n

    [3]<\/span><\/a> \u00a0\u00a0 Resolution 4\/2025 of 20 March (ECLI:ES:TSJM: 2025:21A).<\/p>\n

    [4]<\/span><\/a> \u00a0\u00a0 ECLI:EU:C:2014:2443 and ECLI:EU:C:2016:177.<\/p>\n

    [5]<\/span><\/a> \u00a0\u00a0 ECLI:EU:C:2015:335 and ECLI:EU:C:2016:526.<\/p>\n

    [6]<\/span><\/a> \u00a0\u00a0 ECLI:EU:C:2023:1012.<\/p>\n

    [7]<\/span><\/a> \u00a0\u00a0 ECLI:CE:ECHR:2018:1002JUD004057510.<\/p>\n

    [8]<\/span><\/a> \u00a0\u00a0 TC\u2019s judgment 55\/2021 of 15 March (ECLI:ES:TC:2021:55).<\/p>\n

    [9]<\/span><\/a>\u00a0 \u00a0Article 45.1 of EU Regulation 1215\/2012 and CJUE\u2019s interpretation of predecessor, article 27.1 of Brussels Convention, in the Krombach (ECLI:EU:C:2000:164) and Renault Maxicar cases(ECLI:EU:C:2000:225).<\/p>\n

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    [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    The new TAB regulations highlight the use of new technologies to modernize arbitration and ensure more agile and efficient management of conflicts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":312092,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[557,579],"tags":[560,583,580],"class_list":["post-314498","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-regulations","tag-arbitration","tag-conflict-resolution","tag-regulations"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314498","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=314498"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/314498\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/312092"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=314498"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=314498"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tab.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=314498"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}