Convention
on the Settlement by Arbitration of civil law disputes resulting from relating
of economic and scientific-technical cooperation (Moscow, 1972)
Convention
on the Settlement
By Arbitration of Civil Law Disputes Resulting from Relations of Economic
and Scientific-Technical Cooperation
Done at Moscow, 26 May 1972
Entered into force, 13 Augustus 1973
List of Contracting States (at the bottom)
PREAMBLE
The Governments of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, the
German Democratic Republic, the Hungarian People's Republic, the Mongolian
People's Republic, the Polish People's Republic, the Socialist Republic of
Romania, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the Czechoslovak Socialist
Republic,
Guided by the endeavour to guarantee favourable legal conditions for the
further deepening and improvement of the mutual economic and
scientific-technical cooperation,
Proceeding from the experience, that the proper settlement of disputes arising
in the process of the realization of that cooperation contributes towards its
successful development,
Taking into account, that the courts of arbitration in their countries have
proved in practice to be effective instruments for the solving of disputes
connected with foreign trade transactions and
Aiming at taking even more advantage of these courts of arbitration by transfer
into their competence the civil law disputes arising out of relations of all
kinds of economic and scientific-technical cooperation, Have agreed upon the
following:
Article I
All disputes between economic organizations resulting from contractual and
other civil law cases arising between them in the course of economic and
scientific-technical cooperation of the countries-parties to the present
Convention shall be subject to arbitration proceedings with the exclusion of
the above disputes from jurisdiction of the courts of law.
The term "cases" referred to in paragraph 1 shall mean those arising
from contracts of purchase, contracts of specialization and cooperation of
production, carrying out of building industrial and construction industry
works, on assembling, projecting, prospecting, research, designing and
exploratory development, transport, forwarding and other services as well as
other civil law cases arising in the course of economic and scientific-
technical cooperation of the countries-parties to the Convention.
For the purpose of the present Convention the Term "economic
organization" shall mean enterprises, trusts, associations, combines, main
boards on the basis of profit-and-loss accounting, as well as scientific
research institutes, planning and design bureaus and other organizations of the
same kind, which are civil law subjects and are located in different countries
to the present Convention.
Article II
The disputes, referred to in Article I shall be subject to arbitration by the
Court of Arbitration attached to the Chamber of Commerce in the country of the
respendent or, subject to agreement of the parties concerned, in a third
country-party to the present Convention.
Should specialized arbitration courts for settlement of defined categories of
disputes exist in the countries-parties to the Convention, such disputes with
mutual consent of the parties shall be submitted to such arbitration courts.
For a counterclaim and a set off originating from the same legal case as the
principle claim, the same arbitration court which deals with the principle
claim shall be competent.
Article III
Claims concerning demands for the conclusion of a contract or for the
acceptance of special contractual clauses shall not be submitted to arbitration
courts.
The provision of paragraph 1 of the present Article shall not affect the
competence of the arbitration court to deal with the claim of the aggrieved
party for payment of liquidated damages as provided for a breach of the
agreement to make a contract in future or for compensation of losses caused by
the said breach.
Article IV
The arbitration awards rendered by arbitration courts referred to in paragraph
1, Article II, shall be final and binding. The parties shall execute them
voluntarily.
These awards shall be recognized without any further procedure and shall be
subject to enforcement in any country party to the Convention in the same
manner as judgments passed by the state courts of the country of execution and
which have come into legal force.
The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 of the present Article shall be
accordingly applied to settlements confirmed by the arbitration court.
The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 of the present Article shall also affect
both the awards made by specialized arbitration courts referred to in paragraph
2, Article II of the present Convention, and settlements confirmed by a
specialized arbitration court unless otherwise provided for by the national
legislation of the country where the arbitration court has its seat.
The awards of arbitration courts referred to in Article II of the present
Convention, which have not been voluntarily executed and settlements confirmed
by these arbitration courts may be brought to execution by enforcement within
two years. This limitation period shall be reckoned from the date of serving an
award to the party applying for enforcement and in the case when an award had
been sent by post, from the date of the postmark indicating acceptance of a
registered letter for delivery. In relation to settlements the said limitation
period is reckoned from the date of agreement on such settlement.
Article V
The enforcement of an arbitral award may be refused by the judicial executive
body of the country of enforcement only if:
(a) the award has been made in violation of the rules of competence,
established by the present Convention, or
(b) the party against which the award has been made proves that it was deprived
of the possibility to exercise its rights owing to violation of rules of
arbitral procedure or other circumstances which it could not prevent and to
inform the arbitration court about these circumstances, or
(c) the party against which the award had been made proves that this award has
been set aside or its enforcement has been suspended on the basis of national
legislation of the country in which it was made.
In case of refusal to enforce an award for the reasons referred to in points
"a" and "b", paragraph 1 of the present Article, the party
in whose favour the award has been made is entitled to lodge a new claim on the
same grounds with the competent body within the period of three months from the
date of coming into force of the order for this refusal.
Article VI
The provisions of previously concluded bilateral and multilateral agreements of
the countries-parties to the Convention shall not be applied to the cases
treated by this Convention with the exclusion of agreements in accordance with
which certain categories of civil law disputes are subject to exclusive
jurisdiction of specified authorities.
The present Convention shall not be applied to civil law disputes which in
accordance with the national legislation effective at the moment of signing of
the Convention fall under exclusive jurisdiction of courts of law or other
state authorities
The present Convention shall not be applied to the cases being under
consideration on the day of entry into force of the Convention.
Article VIII
The present Convention shall be subject to ratification by signatory countries.
Instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Secretariat of the
Council for Mutual Economic Assistance which is to perform the duties of the
depositary of the Convention.
The present Convention becomes effective on the ninetieth day following the
date of deposit of the fifth instrument of ratification.
For any country, the instruments of ratification of which will be deposited
after the entry into force of the Convention, the Convention becomes effective
on the ninetieth day after deposit by such country of its instrument of
ratification.
1. Any country may accede to the present Convention after its entry into force
with the consent of the countries parties to the Convention by submitting to
the depositary the instrument of accession. Accession is considered to be in
force 90 days after receipt by the depositary of the last notice of consent of
such accession.
2. The country which accedes to the present Convention shall inform the
depositary which arbitration court, corresponding to the arbitration court
referred to in Paragraph 1 of Article II of the present Convention, is to deal
in this country with disputes specified in Article I of the present Convention.
Any country-party to the present Convention may
withdraw from the Convention by notice to that effect given to the depositary.
Denunciation becomes effective 12 months after the receipt of this notice by
the depositary. Withdrawal of a country from the Convention shall not effect
the cases which are under consideration in accordance with this Convention on
the day of entry into force of the denunciation.
Article XI
The depositary shall immediately inform all signatory and acceding countries about
the date of deposit of each instrument of ratification or document of
accession, the date of entry of the Convention into force and all other notices
it has received, specified by the present Convention.
Article XII
The depositary of the present Convention shall take the necessary measures to
effect the registration of this Convention at the Secretariat of the United
Nations Organization pursuant to the Charter of the United Nations.
Article XIII
The present Convention shall be deposited with the depositary which shall send
duly certified copies of the Convention to the signatory and acceding
countries.
Done in the city of Moscow in one copy, in the Russian language.
LIST OF CONTRACTING STATES
Bulgaria
Cuba
Czechoslovakia
German Democratic Republic
Hungary
Mongolia
Poland
Romania
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Alternative
Internet Sources of English text: