THE CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE WAY OF PROTECTION OF THRID PARTIES RIGHT IN ARBITRATION PROCEEDINGS UNDER ETHIOPIAN ARBITRATION LAW

Abstract

Dispute is an indispensable part of the society. Whenever dispute arises they should be settled in one way or another. Arbitration is one of the mechanisms of dispute settlement in which the parties submit their dispute to an impartial third party. The consent of the parties is a preliminary ground for the arbitration process. It has many principles that stands for the necessity of consent of all parties involved. However, the subject matter of the dispute they submit may involve the interest of third party who could be affected the settlement of the subject matter of the dispute but doesn‟t give their consent at the submission of the contract. And a principle of privity of contract doesn‟t allow the contract to create any effect on the third party. Due to these principles, the question, how the interest of those can be served after the commencement of arbitration proceeding is become confusing. Different countries answer this question in their arbitration act. Countries like Netherlands, gives priority to the principle of privity of contract and allows the intervention of third person even without the consent of original parties. This research is aimed at elaborating the ways of protection of third parties under Ethiopian arbitration laws. By using qualitative data thorough doctrinal method, the researcher has discovered three ways of protection of third parties from the effect of arbitration. These mechanisms are either at the course of the proceeding or after the end of the proceeding or based on the consent of the parties or not. As the protection mechanisms after the end of the proceeding are un economical and contradict the very advantage of Arbitration, the researcher recommends the legislature to enact laws that makes the protection mechanism to be applied at the course of the proceeding without securing the consent of the parties i.e. intervention without the consent of the original parties