AR 39/2020

Ref.: CAM-CCBC activities on an emergency basis in view of public health recommendations related to the coronavirus (Covid-19)

CONSIDERING the exceptional situation of development of the coronavirus (Covid-19) at a global level, with governmental and World Health Organization recommendations to prevent the spread of the virus;

CONSIDERING the CAM-CCBC’s commitment to excellence in providing services and preserving the integrity of the community as a whole, including arbitrators, lawyers, parties and their own employees;

The President of the Center for Arbitration and Mediation of the Chamber of Commerce Brazil-Canada (“CAM-CCBC”) in the use of the powers conferred on her by article 2.6 (c) of the CAM-CCBC Rules, approved on September 1, 2011, with amendments approved on April 28, 2016, resolves to issue this resolution, which provides for the impact from this situation to the activities of CAM-CCBC until April 1, 2020. After that date, the need to modify and/or maintain such measures will be reassessed.

1. Compliance with deadlines and physical protocol

The face-to-face protocol for physical petitions is suspended at the CAM-CCBC headquarters, both at the São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro offices.

All other specific rules for compliance with terms and presentation of documents agreed in the respective Terms of Reference for each arbitration proceeding must be noted, unless otherwise decided by the Arbitral Tribunal (issued on ex officio or at the request of the parties).

Thus, at least until April 1, 2020, all petitions and other documents (attachments, letters,  urgent measures, etc.) must be submitted by e-mail, as provided for in the Terms of Reference. In view of the suspension of the protocol of the paper counterpart, the CAM-CCBC Secretariat will provide the parties and the Arbitral Tribunal by email with guidelines and access to a shared electronic folder for uploading petitions and documents (the guidelines can be accessed through the link)

The submission of requests for the commencement of new proceedings (arbitration or other ADRs [1]) must be made by email to [email protected].

In the proceedings that are still in the stage of formation of the Arbitral Tribunal, the Parties will be consulted by an administrative order regarding their interest in the use of electronic communications during the administrative stage of the proceedings, according to Administrative Resolution No. 29/2018 [2]. The cases will be analyzed individually, but in the event that the parties do not agree on the use of electronic communication, the proceedings may be suspended until the physical protocol is normalized.

2. Hearings and meetings

CAM-CCBC recommends that no in-person hearings and meetings are held.

In order not to hinder the progress of the arbitration cases, the CAM-CCBC Secretariat will send guidelines for conducting hearings remotely, via Microsoft Teams [3],, with the accompaniment of the responsible case manager, (the guidelines can be accessed through the link).

3.Service to the public and operation

All face-to-face visits to the CAM-CCBC headquarters are suspended, both at the São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro offices.

The CAM-CCBC Secretariat will remain available to assist the public on working days⁴, from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm, both by phone and by e-mail. If there is any instability in the telephone service, due to the exceptional circumstances, we kindly ask you to contact the case managers by email.

4. Institutional initiatives

The events organized and hosted by CAM-CCBC in the first semester of 2020 must be postponed to a date to be defined and informed in due course.

With the suspension of visits and face-to-face meetings, contact with the Institutional Development Team is allowed by e-mail [email protected] for possible scheduling of meetings via Microsoft Teams, as explained above.

The proposals for new events, as well as the rescheduling of those that had already been scheduled, will be analyzed on a case-by-case basis and released as soon as they are defined.

 ***
São Paulo, March 16, 2020

Eleonora Coelho
President of CAM-CCBC

 

1.In addition to Arbitration, CAM-CCBC also manages other alternative dispute resolution methods, such as Mediation, Domain Registration and Dispute Boards and acts as Nominating Authority.
2. Available at: AR 29/2018 Electronic Communication during the administrative phase of arbitral proceedings

3. Microsoft Teams is a sound and video communication platform with the ability to bring together virtually several people in the same meeting, just by using a computer with camera and microphone, with internet access.
It is also the official tool, approved by the IT Sector of CAM-CCBC for conducting a hearing of witnesses via video conference, being secure, multiplatform (can be accessed from different devices) and easily accessible.
To make the solution feasible, the Secretariat must send an invitation via e-mail to all participants through which access to the meeting will be granted via sound and/or video. During the meeting it is also possible to easily project documents and presentations via screen sharing.
The following tutorial shows how to access and use the tool: click here.
4. Regarding the CAM-CCBC official dispatch, see Administrative Resolution No. 38/2019, which deals with the calendar for 2020, available at: AR 38/2019 – Calendar 2020