The international arbitration initiated by Panama Ports against Panama entails several key stages. International arbitration specialist Esteban López explained that international arbitration occurs when the parties agree, at the time of signing the contract, that any dispute will be resolved outside of local jurisdiction, that is, not before the Panamanian justice system, but through this mechanism. According to López, Panama must now formally respond to the arbitration request, appoint its arbitrator, and participate in the selection of the third party. López also highlighted that Panama has a favorable track record in international arbitrations, with positive results in 95% of cases, because it complies with what is agreed, faces the processes, and takes them to the end. 'We have to keep in mind that there was a previous Comptroller’s report stating that everything was in order, and Panama Ports’ lawyers are going to use that,' he clarified. However, he noted that the process can be suspended at any time if the parties reach an agreement. 'One of the keys will be to demonstrate that the contract did not comply with the requirements demanded by Panamanian law, as established by the Supreme Court of Justice,' he stressed, despite PPC's attempts to argue otherwise. Stages of International Arbitration The procedure includes several phases: constitution of the arbitration tribunal, signing of the procedural record, which establishes the rules of the process, meeting between arbitrators and the parties to define the roadmap, challenge of arbitrators, if necessary, presentation of evidence and counter-evidence, practice of testing and expert reports, closing arguments, issuance of the arbitral award. During the process, each party will present its position in order to defend its interests before the court. The Strategy of the Panamanian State According to López, Panama must prepare in a consensual and transparent manner, relying on lawyers specializing in international arbitration and concession contracts, as well as time and technical expertise. López also stated that it is not necessary to wait for the arbitration ruling to grant a new concession, since the Supreme Court of Justice determined that the contract with PPC does not legally exist. The Panamanian State will argue that once we began the review, we realized that the State’s sovereignty had been violated, that the law had not been followed; this will be the most important point of this arbitration, López asserted.
