BCDR-AAA is both a legislatively mandated court with specific jurisdiction and an arbitration center established by Legislative Decree No. (30) of 2009 (Arabic) (English) as amended by Legislative Decree No. (64) of 2014 (Arabic) which confers two types of jurisdiction on the BCDR-AAA:
BCDR Court (Section I)
Key Features:
- Tribunals appointed are composed of three members, two judges of the highest Bahraini jurisdictions and the third member chosen from the BCDR Court's roster of neutrals.
- Judgements rendered by (Section I) tribunals are considered as final judgments issued by the courts of the Kingdom of Bahrain.
- Judgements are not appealable and the only recourse available is annulment under limited grounds of challenge before the Bahraini Court of Cassation.
- Foreign lawyers may represent parties in Jurisdiction by Law (Section I) cases if they have a joint power of attorney with a Bahraini lawyer authorized to practice before the Bahrain Cassation Court.
BCDR-AAA as an ADR center (Arbitration and Mediation - Section II)
Key Features:
- Arbitration and Mediation Rules are based on international best practices with tailor-made approach which addressed some of their shortcomings. The Rules were drafted with the underlying philosophy of striking a balance between the interest of all the parties, and to assure that the arbitration process itself does not get unduly delayed or hindered. The ultimate goal of the Rules is the speedy, efficient and cost effective resolution of disputes.
- Free Arbitration Zone: Under Article (25) of Bahraini Legislative Decree No. (30) for 2009, parties to an arbitration seated in Bahrain and governed by a law other than Bahrain law may choose to exclude the Bahrain courts from hearing annulment challenges to the arbitral award.
- Foreign lawyers may represent parties in BCDR-AAA arbitration and mediation cases.