This is an information section about the Arbitration Chamber of Kazakhstan which will help you find the important information for citizens and legal entities on Arbitrage, its working principles, procedures for filing a request to Arbitrage. Contact information of the Permanent Arbitrages operating in your city or region can be found in the Register of Chamber on our website.

What is Arbitrage?

Arbitrage, as an alternative way of resolving disputes, has been used in Kazakhstan for more than twenty years. On April 8, 2016 a Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan was passed No. 488-V ЗРК “On Arbitration” (Law On Arbitration), which combined two previously effective Laws – On Tribunal Courts and On International Arbitration.

Arbitrage is a non-governmental court established in the form of a permanent arbitrage or an arbitrage for resolving specific civil disputes.

Permanent Arbitrages can be organized by individuals and (or) legal entities in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Arbitrage for reviewing a specific case is created by the parties for resolving a dispute and operates until the dispute is resolved or until the parties decide to take the dispute to the court.

Who can file a request to Arbitrage?

Parties in the Arbitrage can be individuals and (or) legal entities, regardless of their place of residence or place of living inside the Republic of Kazakhstan or abroad.

A dispute could be filed to Arbitrage if the parties sign an Arbitration agreement in relation to the disputes that arose or could arise between the parties on specific civil matter.

An Arbitration Agreement for the dispute that is being reviewed by a court could be concluded before the award is granted for that dispute by the said court. In that case a court makes an order to leave the case without review.

An Arbitration Agreement is concluded in writing. It could be made in the form of an arbitration clause included in the text of a civil contract.

Benefits of applying to Arbitrage for dispute resolution

Unlike the state court, in Arbitrage:

• the parties are entitled to choose the rules on their own according to which the dispute will be reviewed;
• the parties are entitled to choose the place and language of proceedings;
• the parties are entitled to choose their own arbitrators;
• proceedings are kept confidential;
• quickness and effectiveness of the process;
• arbitral award is final and can’t be reconsidered in principle;
• Arbitral award is easy to enforce in a foreign country due to the Convention on Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (New York, June 10, 1958).

Which disputes can be taken by Arbitrage?

Arbitrage can take on disputes arising out of civil relationships between the individuals and (or) legal entities;

• disputes on property;
• disputes arising out of different non-property relations connected to property;

Arbitrage is not allowed to take on the following disputes:

• disputes in which interests of underage people are involved;
• disputes involving people who were officially deemed incapable or partially incapable;
• dispute on rehabilitation and bankruptcy;
• disputes between subjects of natural monopolies and its consumers;
• disputes between the state bodies;
• disputes between the subjects of quasi-public sector;

Could the arbitral award be reversed?

Arbitral award is final and can’t be reconsidered in principle and can only be reversed according to Article 52 of the Law On Arbitration based on the procedure of the Civil Procedure Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Chapter 56).

Below is the complete list of reasons for reversal of award.

Article 52 of the Law on Arbitration stipulates two possible cases for the reversal of the arbitral award by the state court:

1) when the motion is filed by one of the parties to reverse the award. The party that filed the motion shall provide the court with the relevant evidence. With that, the basis for filing a motion can only be procedural violations;

2) court’s decision (which can be made without the motion of the party). This is possible only if the court determines that:

1. a) arbitral award contradicts the public order of the RK or
2. b) the dispute for which the award was granted can’t be the subject to the arbitration proceedings according to the legislation of the RK.

Compulsory enforcement of the arbitral award

If the arbitral award was not executed within the specified period, it shall be a subject to compulsory enforcement.

The compulsory enforcement of the arbitral award is conducted according to the rules of the established enforcement process based on the order of execution issued by the court.

Then application for the compulsory enforcement of the arbitral award is filed to the court in accordance with the Civil Procedure Code of the RK.

Basis for rendering the enforcement of arbitral award invalid or refusing to enforce the award is specified in the Article 57 of the Law on Arbitration and Article 255 of the Civil Procedure Code.