By Camille A. Aguinaldo, Reporter
SENATOR Maria Lourdes Nancy S. Binay has filed a bill seeking to create a Philippine Arbitration Commission that will have jurisdiction over all disputes in medical malpractice, insurance laws, maritime laws, intellectual property law, and intra-corporate matters.
In her explanatory note, Ms. Binay said Senate Bill No. 2033, which was filed last Sept. 26, creates a governmental body that will address the recurring problem of congested cases pending in courts and the prolonged period of case resolutions.
“The mandatory arbitration before the Philippine Arbitration Commission would definitely alleviate the recurring problem of clogged dockets in our courts. Decongestion of cases will soon be realized as a number of cases could be taken out of the jurisdiction of the judiciary,” she said.
Ms. Binay also noted that the bill supplements the cases covered in Republic Act No. 9285 or the Alternative Dispute Resolution Act.
Under the bill, a sole arbitrator or three arbitrators called the Arbitral Tribunal are mandated settle a dispute or may act as mediator by written agreement. The arbitrators are accredited by the Commission.
The commission will be composed of a chairman, which the bill designates to the University of the Philippines (UP) College of law dean, and seven members to be appointed by the President.
Ex officio members of the commission will include the Secretaries of the Department of Health (DoH), the Department of Transportation (DoTr), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairperson, the Insurance Commission chair, and the director general of the Intellectual Property Office.
Among the functions of the commission is to assist in the conduct of arbitration as well as to formulate an arbitration program and policies relating to the covered areas of dispute.
Ms. Binay said arbitration over areas of disputes, which involve cases of medical malpractice, insurance law, maritime laws, intellectual property law and intra-corporate matters, will allow involved parties the flexibility and autonomy to resolve conflicts, compared to the courts which are bound to strict rules of evidence.
Disputes from employer-employee relationships, territorial disputes with neighboring countries, and construction disputes are not covered by the proposed commission.
“With the greater transparency and high comfort of level doing business in the country, foreign investors are more inclined to invest here in our country. Accordingly, this bill will definitely augment their decision to shift here as it affords them greater democracy in settling disputes,” Ms. Binay said.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR