This book is a useful knowledge tool for all those who intend to study the Italian arbitration system in depth, with reference to the regulations and laws currently in force, both within a national and an international framework. The relatively short size of the book is justified by intention to provide an overview of the system, along with a carefully selected list of references of the doctrine and the case law, starting from general notions, then dealing with more specific issues, step by step. It starts from arbitration conventions, followed by the appointment of arbitrators; then the various phases of the arbitration procedure are discussed and commented on, highlighting in particular the taking of evidence, and an emphasis is given to subjective complications of the proceedings. The final section of the book deals with arbitration awards, their review and the recognition and enforcement of foreign awards in Italy. A chapter is dedicated to the delicate relation between arbitration and trial before an Italian judge. To provide and complete the view of arbitration in Italy, the annexes at the end of the book report an non-official translation of the articles of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure dedicated to arbitration (Articles 806-832 and 839-840) and the special law on company arbitration (Legislative Decree No. 5 of 2003).

Arbitration law in Italy comes from various sources--the code of civil procedure, certain references within various laws, and the numerous bilateral and multilateral conventions to which Italy is a party. Without guidance, practitioners and academics risk missing an interpretational twist which changes the effect of the law. The Italian Law on Arbitration provides the essential guidance needed to assure a complete, informed understanding of the law. This book concisely and effectively presents the law of arbitration in Italy through individual analyses of all relevant provisions. Accompanying notes, where appropriate, interpret the provisions and provide practical applications of each rule of law in the light of doctrinal writings, court decisions, and field experience. These notes straightforwardly present the current, black letter law on the topic in question. Areas covered include dispute settlement, transnational litigation, conflict of laws, civil law, and procedural law. The Italian Law on Arbitration addresses all of the main problems relating to arbitration as a method of dispute settlement by the parties' election, including relations with state jurisdiction, status of the arbitrator, arbitrator impartiality, related duty of disclosure issues, challenges to arbitral awards, and enforcement of domestic and foreign awards in Italy.

Arbitrating cross-border business disputes has been common practice in Italy since centuries. It is no wonder, then, that Italian arbitration law and jurisprudence are ample and sophisticated. Italian courts have already rendered thousands of judgments addressing complex problems hidden in the regulation of arbitration. Italian jurists have been among the outstanding members of the international arbitration community, starting from when back in 1958, Professor Eugenio Minoli was among the promoters of the New York Convention. Being Italy the third-largest economy in the European Union and the eighth-largest economy by nominal GDP in the world, it also comes as no surprise that Italian companies, and foreign companies with respect to the business they do in the Italian market, are among the main ‘users’ of international arbitration, nor that Italy is part to a network of more than 80 treaties aimed to protect inbound and outbound foreign direct investments and being the ground for investment arbitration cases. Moreover, in recent years, Italy has risen to prominence as a neutral arbitral seat, in particular for the settlement of ‘intra-Mediterranean’ disputes, also thanks to the reputation acquired by the Milan Chamber of Arbitration which has become one of the main European arbitral institutions. This book is the first commentary on international arbitration in Italy ever written in English. It is an indispensable tool for arbitrators, counsel, experts, officers of arbitral institutions and judges who happen to be involved in arbitral proceedings or arbitration-related court proceedings somewhat linked to the Italian legal system, either because Italy is the seat of the arbitration, the Italian jurisdiction has been ousted by a foreign-seated arbitration, the assistance of Italian courts is sought for the granting of interim measures or the enforcement of a foreign award or the arbitration results from a multilateral or bilateral investment protection treaty to which Italy is a party. This book may also be of general interest for scholars and practitioners of international arbitration at large to the extent that it deals with the ‘theory’ of international arbitration and illustrates original solutions offered by Italian arbitration law to various complex issues, such as: the potential conflicts (and required balance) between party autonomy and State sovereignty in the governance of arbitrations; the relationship between the New York Convention and the legal system of the State of the arbitral seat; the potential impact on cross-border arbitrations of insolvencies, human rights, or European Union law; the arbitrability of corporate disputes; the extension of arbitration agreements to ‘necessary parties’. Appendixes include an English translation of the main provisions of Italian law relevant to arbitration, a list of the investment protection treaties to which Italy is a party, and an English version of the Rules of Arbitration of the Milan Chamber of Arbitration. The author, who is full professor of international law, name partner of ArbLit (the first Italian boutique focusing on cross-border dispute settlement) and the current Italian member of the ICC Court of Arbitration, has written the book aiming to combine his academic background with his long-standing experience as counsel and arbitrator.