ARBITRATION RULES

The Building Disputes Tribunal is the leading independent, nationwide provider of specialist dispute resolution services for the building and construction industry in New Zealand.

Our extensive knowledge and experience enables us to develop a comprehensive understanding of the industry’s and the community’s commercial and business needs and to constantly deliver sound, commercially relevant, innovative, and effective dispute resolution services.

The Tribunal has developed a suite of commercial arbitration Rules and procedures which have increased the efficiency and potency of arbitration as a modern dispute resolution procedure.

The procedures covered by the Tribunal’s Rules are intended to give parties the widest choice and the capacity to adopt fully administered procedures which are fair, prompt and cost effective and which provide a proportionate response to the amounts in dispute and the complexity of the issues involved.

These processes include:

Expedited Commercial Arbitration within 45 days (on the documents)

The Overriding Objective is to enable the Arbitrator to produce a Final Award including a determination as to costs within forty five (45) working days from the date upon which the Building Disputes Tribunal communicates acceptance of the Arbitrator’s appointment to the parties.

Click here to download a Sample Agreement & Rules (ECA45)

Expedited Commercial Arbitration within 60 days

The Overriding Objective is to enable the Arbitrator to produce a Final Award including a determination as to costs within sixty (60) working days from the date upon which the Building Disputes Tribunal communicates acceptance of the Arbitrator’s appointment to the parties.

Click here to download a Sample Agreement & Rules (ECA60)

Expedited Commercial Arbitration within 90 days

The Overriding Objective is to enable the Arbitrator to produce a Final Award including a determination as to costs within ninety (90) working days from the date upon which the Building Disputes Tribunal (the Tribunal) communicates acceptance of the Arbitrator’s appointment to the parties.

Click here to download a Sample Agreement & Rules (ECA90)

Arbitration Rules for Administered Domestic Commercial Arbitration

These Rules are the Rules of Arbitration of the Building Disputes Tribunal for domestic commercial arbitration and may be referred to as the Building Disputes Tribunal Arbitration Rules.

Where parties have agreed to refer their disputes to the Building Disputes Tribunal for arbitration, or to arbitration administered by the Building Disputes Tribunal, or words to the same effect, the parties will be deemed to have agreed that the arbitration shall be governed by and conducted in accordance with these Rules, subject to such modification as the parties may agree in writing.

These Rules came into force on 1 July 2010 and unless the parties have agreed otherwise, these Rules shall apply to any arbitration commenced after that date.

Click here to download the BDT Arbitration Rules (DCA Rules)

Bespoke Commercial Arbitration

The Tribunal specialises in the preparation of Bespoke Commercial Arbitration processes to meet the varied and specific needs of parties to construction contracts.

Such Bespoke Commercial Arbitration Agreements are generally an amalgam of elements from the Tribunal’s standard form Arbitration Agreements together with the particular procedural requirements of the parties which in some cases may closely mirror the formal procedures and Rules of the High Court.

Expert witnesses

The Tribunal’s Rules incorporate Guidelines for Expert Evidence to assist experts, parties and their advisers understand experts’ obligations and the Tribunal’s expectations in relation to the preparation of reports, joint conferences of experts and the taking of concurrent evidence.

The Rules require adherence to the Tribunal’s Expert Witness Code of Conduct.

Administered Arbitration

By incorporating the Building Dispute Tribunal’s Rules into contracts, or agreeing to refer existing disputes to arbitration under the Tribunal’s Rules, there are significant benefits for parties including:

that the arbitration will take place within a recognised and established procedural and administrative framework:

pursuant to comprehensive, clear and proven arbitration rules on which the parties can rely, including mechanisms for appointment and challenges to arbitrators;
with the administrative assistance of an experience professional secretariat which will help the parties and the arbitrators on a wide variety of procedural issues.

the Tribunal has a detailed knowledge of, and access to, the most eminent and appropriately qualified and experienced arbitrators;

the Tribunal can assist the parties with the appointment of arbitrators and is best placed to make a default appointment;

if the parties are unable to agree on an arbitrator; or
in the case of a three person arbitral tribunal, to complete the composition of such a tribunal where a party refuses to appoint an arbitrator, or where the appointed arbitrators fail to select the third arbitrator within the required period of time

the Tribunal acts as an appellate body in cases of challenge to the independence or impartiality of an arbitrator;

the Tribunal carries out quality control over the work of the arbitrators appointed under its Rules by reviewing awards and monitoring the progress of proceedings;

the Tribunal acts as a secure and independent stakeholder and fund holder:

the Tribunal holds and manages deposits as security for the arbitrator’s fees and expenses, disbursing funds when required and accounting to the parties for sums held and disbursed;
the Tribunal will act as a stakeholder for disputed monies.

the Tribunal’s established Rules safeguard due process and the quality and enforceability of awards minimising the potential for uncertainty and opportunity to delay or derail the process.