The Arbitration Court at the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry supports the amendments to the Law on International Commercial Arbitration.

The Arbitration Court at the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), as the leading and longest-established arbitration institution in Bulgaria, which has actively participated in the development and application of Bulgarian legislation in the field of arbitration, supports the Draft Law on Amendments and Supplements to the Law on International Commercial Arbitration (LICA), published for public discussion on May 14, 2025, prepared by the Ministry of Justice.

The Arbitration Court considers that the draft law will allow for the consideration of current issues in the practice of applying the current LICA, will align the Bulgarian legislation with EU law, and will create a reliable mechanism to ensure the integrity of the arbitration proceedings. The proposed changes will increase confidence in the activities of arbitrations - not only through the introduction of a public register of arbitration institutions, but also through the establishment of clear requirements regarding the activities of arbitration institutions.

The Arbitration Court at the BCCI fully supports the changes regarding the verification carried out by the District Court in the region where the debtor's permanent address or headquarters is located when issuing an enforcement order based on the arbitration award, and considers the introduction of new sanctions and measures to increase the effectiveness of subsequent administrative control over the arbitration activities conducted on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria to be adequate and timely.

Some of the proposals for changes and additions to the proposed draft Law on Amendments and Supplements to the LICA made by the Arbitration Court at the BCCI are as follows: The Arbitration Court considers that the current provision of Article 11 of the LICA should be maintained, as if the provision is adopted in the proposed form, it would undermine the existing rules of each arbitration institution. The Arbitration Court also proposes to narrow the application of the provision of Article 32(5), so that it applies only to natural persons who are citizens of the EU and the countries of the European Economic Area. The purpose of the proposed changes is to protect natural person debtors, but the interests of creditors should also be taken into account, considering the difficulties in notifying citizens outside the EU and the EEA.

Now is the time to add new texts to the LICA to facilitate the digitalization and modernization of the arbitration process, which is essential for the development of the economic environment and the confidence of foreign investors in Bulgaria and its judiciary, as well as for maintaining Bulgaria's position as a pro-arbitration jurisdiction. The Arbitration Court considers that the amendments to the LICA should be in line with the spirit of the UNCITRAL Model Law, which has proven to be an effective and balanced act in many countries.