Publication details
Money Laundering in International Commercial Arbitration
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2018 |
| Type | Article in Proceedings |
| Conference | Economic and Social Development (Book of Proceedings), 31st International Scientific Conference on Economic and Social Development - “Legal Challenges of Modern World” |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | Open access sborníku |
| Keywords | international commercial arbitration; money laundering; criminal laws; arbitrator; criminal liability; intention; negligence; investigation; notification; witness; EU directive |
| Attached files | |
| Description | International commercial arbitration is currently the preferred method of resolution of disputes originating from international business transactions. It is not only the number, but also the diversity and complexity of disputes that have been growing. At present, arbitrators also deal with criminal offences that may have serious impact on society and economy, e.g. corruption, fraud and last but not least money laundering. It is not disputed that decisions on criminal sanctions remain exclusively in the hands of national courts. However, this does not mean that the arbitrators are precluded from applying criminal laws. The occurrence of money laundering within the international commercial arbitration is a complex issue raising a lot of questions, e.g. arbitrability of such disputes, validity of arbitration agreement, applicable criminal law, evidence, duties of arbitrators, review of arbitral awards etc. As it is not possible to deal with all these question this paper focuses only on several aspects. Two possible situations in which money laundering can manifest in international commercial arbitration are identified. First, money laundering can be alleged by a party as defence to the enforcement of a contract in dispute. Second, arbitration can be abused for laundering of illicit assets. The paper further deals with the arbitrators’ legal obligations under criminal and regulatory law in the face of suspected or alleged money laundering. In this part the paper focuses especially on the second scenario, e.g. when arbitration is abused for money laundering. The paper analyses if the arbitrators are covered by criminal law provision on money laundering and on notification duties. The paper also analyses if the arbitrators fall within the scope of regulatory system imposing identification and reporting duties. In this part the paper reflects especially relevant provisions of Czech and EU law. |
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