REPUBLIC ACT NO.

9285

An Act to Institutionalize the Use of an

Alternative Dispute Resolution System in the
Philippines

Features:
Promotes party autonomy
Involves participation of private sectors
Application is without prejudice to the Supreme Court
ADR system.
Definition of Terms
 ADR system – process or procedure used to resolve a
dispute or controversy other than adjudication of a
presiding judge of a court or an officer of a
government agency, in which third neural party
participates to assist in the resolution of issues.
 Arbitration- voluntary dispute resolution process in
which one or more arbitrators resolve a dispute by
rendering an award
 Mediation- voluntary process in which a mediator
facilitates communication and negotiation and assist
the parties in reaching a voluntary agreement
regarding the dispute.
 Mini-Trial – a structured dispute resolution in which the
merits of a case are argued before a panel after which
the parties seek a negotiated settlement
Liabilities and Limitations

 Liabilities
 The liabilities of an ADR provider/ practitioner shall be in
accordance with the administrative code of 1987.

 Limitations
 Labor disputes
 Civil Status of persons
 Validity of marriage
 Grounds for legal separation
 Jurisdiction of courts
 Future legitime
 Criminal liability
 Those which by law cannot be compromised
Mediation
 Coverage:
 Voluntary mediation whether ad hoc or institutional
 Exception:
 Court –Annexed Mediation (process conducted under the
supervision of the court.
 Confidentiality Rule
 Information obtained shall be privileged and confidential.
 Shall not be subject to discovery and shall be inadmissible in
any judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings
 Parties
 Mediator/s
 Counsel for the parties
 Non-party participants
 Any person hired or engaged in connection with the mediation.
 Mediation
 Waiver
 The privilege maybe waived either on record or orally during a proceeding by the
mediator and the parties

 Exceptions:
 No privilege against disclosure if mediation communication is:
 Agreement evidence by a record authenticated by all parties
 Information is available to the public or that the proceeding is open.
 A thereat or statement of a plan to inflict bodily injury or commit a crime.
 Intentionally used to plan crime, attempt to commit, or commit a crime or
conceal an ongoing crime or criminality.
 sought or offered to prove or disprove abuse, neglect, abandonment or
exploitation in which a public agency is protecting the interest of an individual
protected by law.
 Sought or offered to prove or disprove a claim or complainant of professional
misconduct or malpractice filed against mediator, party, nonparty participants or
representative of a party based on conduct occurring during a mediation.

 No privilege if a court or administrative agency finds:

 A court proceeding involving a crime or felony
 A proceeding to prove a claim or defense that under th law is sufficient to
reform or avoid a liability on a contract arising out of the mediation.
Mediation
 Participation in Mediation
 Parties may designate a lawyer or any other person to provide assistance

 Place of Mediation
 Parties are free to agree
 If none is designated, place of mediation shall be any place convenient and
appropriate to all parties.

 Effect of Agreement to Submit Dispute to Mediation

 Agreement to submit a dispute to mediation in any institution shall include the
agreement to be bound by the internal mediation and administrative policies
of such institution.

 Enforcement of Mediation Settlement Agreement

 Shall be prepared by the parties
 Parties shall sign the settlement agreement
 Mediator shall certify that she/he explained the content of the settlement
agreement to the parties
 May deposit such settlement agreement with the appropriate Clerk of a
Regional Trial Court of the place where one of the parties resides
International Commercial Arbitration
 International commercial dispute
 Applicable Law
 Shall be governed by the UNCITRAL Model law on International Commercial
Arbitration

 Legal Representation
 Party may be represented by any party of his choice.

 Confidentiality
 The proceeding shall be confidential and shall not be published, except:
 With consent of the parties
 Disclosing to court or relevant documents in cases where resort to the
court is allowed

 Interim Measure
 Parties may request provisional relief:
 To prevent irreparable loss or injury
 To provide security for the performance of any obligation
 To produce or preserve any evidence
 To compel any other appropriate act or omission

 Place of Arbitration
 Parties are free to agree
 If no agreement, Metro Manila (circumstances of the case & convenience of
the parties)
Domestic Arbitration
 Applicable law
 Shall be governed by Republic Act 876 (“The Arbitration Law”)
 UNCITRAL Model Law Provisions:
 Article 8 - Arbitration Agreement and Substantial claims before court
 Article 10 - Number of Arbitrators
 Article 11 - Appointment of Arbitrators
 Article 12 - Grounds for Challenge
 Article 13 - Challenge procedure
 Article 14 - Failure or impossibility to act
 Article 18 - Equal Treatment of Parties
 Article 29 - Decision- making by panel of arbitrators
 Article 32 - Termination of proceedings
 International Commercial Arbitration Provision:
 Section 22 - Legal Representation
 Section 23 - Confidential of Arbitration Proceedings
 Section 24 - Referral to Arbitration
 Section 25 - interpretation of the Act
 Section 26 - Meaning of Appointing Authority
 Section 27 - Functions maybe performed by Appointing Authority
 Section 28 - Grant of Interim Measure of Protection
 Section 29 - Further Authority to Grant interim measure of protection
 Section 30 - Place of Arbitration
 Section 31 - Language of the Arbitration
 Arbitration Awards
 Domestic Awards
 Confirmation of Award
 Section 23 of R.A. 876
 “SEC. 23. Confirmation of award. — At any time within one month after the award
is made, any party to the controversy which was arbitrated may apply to the court
having jurisdiction, as provided thereupon the court must grant such order unless
the award is vacated, modified or corrected, as prescribed herein…”

 Vacation Award
 Any party may question the arbitral award with the appropriate Regional Trial Court
 Grounds:
 Section 25 of R.A 876
 The award was procured by corruption, fraud, or other inadmissible means;
 There was evident partiality or corruption in the arbitrators;
 The arbitrators were guilty of misconduct in refusing to postpone the hearing
upon sufficient cause shown;
 Refusing to hear evidence pertinent and material to the dispute;
 One or more of the arbitrators was disqualified to act and willfully refrained
from disclosing such disqualification;
 Any misbehavior by which the rights of any party have been materially
prejudiced; or
 The arbitrators exceeded their powers, or so imperfectly executed them, that a
mutual, final and definite award upon the subject matter submitted to them
was not made.
Arbitration Awards
 Foreign Arbitral Awards
 New York Convention shall governed the recognition and enforcement of
arbitral awards.
 Rejection of Foreign Arbitral Award:
 Article V of the New York Convention:
 “1. Recognition and enforcement of the award may be refused:
 The parties to the agreement referred to in article II were, under the law
applicable to them, under some incapacity, or the said agreement is not
valid under the law to which the parties have subjected it or, failing any
indication thereon, under the law of the country where the award was made;
or
 The party against whom the award is invoked was not given proper notice of
the appointment of the arbitrator or of the arbitration proceedings or was
otherwise unable to present his case; or
 The award deals with a difference not contemplated by or not falling within
the terms of the submission to arbitration, or it contains decisions on
matters beyond the scope of the submission to arbitration, provided that, if
the decisions on matters submitted to arbitration can be separated from
those not so submitted, that part of the award which contains decisions on
matters submitted to arbitration may be recognized and enforced; or
 The composition of the arbitral authority or the arbitral procedure was not in
accordance with the agreement of the parties, or, failing such agreement,
was not in accordance with the law of the country where the arbitration took
place; or
 The award has not yet become binding on the parties, or has been set aside
or suspended by a competent authority of the country in which, or under the
law of which, that award was made.
Cont…
 2. Recognition and enforcement of an arbitral award may also be refused if
the competent authority in the country where recognition and enforcement is
sought finds that:
 The subject matter of the difference is not capable of settlement by
arbitration under the law of that country; or
 The recognition or enforcement of the award would be contrary to the
public policy of that country.