Barbados is ready for an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) centre.
A Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) feasibility study into the establishment of such a facility found that “overall, the legal environment within Barbados and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) was supportive of the ADR process and the interest of the stakeholder groups was encouraging”.
Technical and financial assistance for the study was provided by Compete Caribbean, a regional private sector development programme jointly funded by the Inter American Development Bank, the United Kingdom Department for International Development and Canada’s Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development.
The study, conducted by Baria Ahmed, an ADR expert based in the United Kingdom, considered the proposal to establish an ADR Centre in Barbados, ideally to serve as a regional hub for Barbados and the OECS.
The findings were disclosed at a breakfast meeting attended by members of the legal and business fraternity.
Against the backdrop of the positive results, the consultant supported the establishment of the proposed centre and made recommendations for the set up and its services, the BCCI said in Press release on the matter.
Ahmed also highlighted some of the challenges, including the Arbitration Act 1958, which currently governs domestic arbitration cases in Barbados, and which she said “needs to be updated urgently”.
Another difficulty was the lack of simple and effective mechanisms to enforce awards and this was underscored by the World Bank’s “Doing Business Rankings” which placed Barbados at 110 out of 189 countries in the enforcement of contracts.
BCCI President Tracey Shuffler said she was pleased with the report’s conclusions and the support for the proposed centre and thanked the BCCI’s Legal Affairs Committee for spearheading the initiative. Shuffler said the centre could help businesses settle commercial disputes outside of the courts, which could help reduce the number of cases before the law courts. She noted that while more than 2 500 new cases were lodged in the courts annually, only 70 to 80 decisions were handed down per year.
“Based on the study, the centre could deliver ADR services for the benefit of both domestic and international parties as well as offering ADR training, workshops and seminars to develop the field throughout the region.” she said. Shuffler added that Barbados was well poised to also attract international arbitration cases especially since the proclamation of the International Commercial Arbitration Act in 2009.
Compete Caribbean’s executive director Sylvia Dohnert was delighted with the findings. She said the study clearly showed that such a centre could function under the existing legal framework and could provide more expedited mechanisms to resolve commercial disputes in domestic and international cases.
“The study has been very well received and we are positive that the stakeholders will implement its recommendations,” she said. (SC/PR)
