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FAQ

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What are the rules for enforcement of domestic arbitration awards in Poland, and what are the costs involved?

Following recognition or enforcement by the court, an arbitration award or settlement agreed before an arbitral tribunal has the same legal effect as a judgment of a court or a settlement agreed before a court.

Regardless of the country where the award was issued, recognition or enforcement is conducted according to the rules set forth in the Civil Procedure Code.

The court that would have had jurisdiction to consider the matter (had the parties not concluded an arbitration clause) has jurisdiction to recognise or enforce an arbitration award or settlement agreed before an arbitral tribunal, upon motion of a party.

A motion is subject to a fee of PLN 300.

The party is required to enclose with the motion the original award or settlement (or a copy certified by the arbitral tribunal) as well as the original arbitration agreement (or a certified copy). If the arbitration award or settlement agreed before the arbitral tribunal or the arbitration clause is not in Polish, the party is required to enclose a certified Polish translation.

Where an arbitration award or settlement agreed before an arbitral tribunal is capable of being enforced, the court will enforce it by issuing a writ of enforcement.

The court will refuse recognition or enforcement if:

• the dispute was not arbitrable, or
• recognition or enforcement would be contrary to fundamental principles of the legal order of the Republic of Poland (the public policy clause).

Furthermore, upon motion of a party the court will refuse to recognise or enforce an award where:

• there was no arbitration clause, or the clause is invalid, ineffective or no longer in force under applicable law;
• the party was not duly notified of the appointment of an arbitrator or of the proceedings before the arbitral tribunal, or did not have the ability to defend its rights before the tribunal;
• the award does not concern a dispute covered by the arbitration clause or is beyond the scope of the arbitration clause (but if decisions on matters submitted to arbitration can be separated from the extraneous issues, only the part of the award that contains decisions on matters not submitted to arbitration will be denied recognition or enforcement);
• the composition of the arbitral tribunal or the procedure before the tribunal was inconsistent with the parties’ agreement, or in the absence of agreement, was inconsistent with the law of the country where the arbitration was conducted; or
• the arbitration award is not yet binding on the parties or was set aside, or enforcement was stayed, by a court in the country in which or according to whose law the award was issued.