Article entitled Comment on the text of Article (20) of the Iraqi Arbitration Law Draft for the year 2024

Arbitration opponents mean the set of procedures that take place before the arbitrator with the aim of resolving the subject of the dispute and stipulated in most arbitration laws, including the draft Iraqi Arbitration Law for the year 2024 in Article (18) thereof, which is that the two parties to the arbitration have the right to agree on the procedures followed by the arbitration body to consider the dispute. This is due to the specificity of arbitration, which requires a degree of procedural flexibility, as the will of the parties plays an important and fundamental role in determining the procedures followed before the arbitrator, considering that arbitration is an optional way to resolve disputes, and therefore it is possible to violate the procedural rules followed before the state judiciary, but this is restricted by the arbitrator's commitment to the basic guarantees of litigation. We hope that the Iraqi legislator will add new paragraphs to the text of Article 20 of the draft law, as follows:First: The arbitration body shall be committed to independence and impartiality and to ensuring the provision of full and equal opportunities for the parties to the arbitration case on an equal footing, and it shall avoid unjustified delays and avoid unjustified expenses and costs.Second: The parties to the arbitration case shall be represented by lawyers with absolute authority that qualifies them to plead and represent before the arbitration body and all stages of the arbitration case.