QUASI-ARBITRATION WITH REFERENCE TO FIDIC RULES

Abstract

Quasi-arbitration is a way of settling a dispute without going to court. While it is increasingly present in modern business practices, in Croatia only a few university professors have dealt with it. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to describe the procedure and its rules and bring it closer to potential users. In the introductory part, we briefly analyse the term quasi- arbitration. As the term has a lot in common with arbitration, we also analyse its relation with arbitration. The paper focuses on recent changes to the rules on technical arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) because they can be used as a great guide for finding possible Croatian solutions. On the other hand, special attention has been paid to FIDIC rules since they exemplify the presence of quasi-arbitration clauses applied in Croatia, and the authors believe that they have become the standard for construction and engineering works financed by the cohesion and structural funds, which are of crucial importance for co-financing of infrastructure projects in Croatia. The authors’ opinion is that familiarising both experts and the general public with these rules may contribute to more transparent public procurement not only in public investment but also in private projects as they greatly facilitate business operation.