Albanian 
Prishtinë, March 27th, 2023 – Today marked the beginning of the Arbitration Week organized by AmCham and the USAID Activity for Commercial Justice in Kosovo. This week aims to promote and spread awareness about the benefits of arbitration as an alternate method for dispute resolution for businesses.
The first day of the week featured a panel discussion on “Arbitration opportunities and the judiciary for businesses”. The panel was composed of Chris Thompson, Chief of Party at the USAID’s Commercial Justice Activity, Mahir Tutuli, President of the Commercial Court in Kosovo, and Kujtesa Nezaj Shehu, Lawyer at SDP Kosova.
Arbitration is often considered to be a more efficient process than litigation due to its speed, cost-effectiveness, and flexibility of process and procedure. During the panel discussion, Tutuli highlighted the importance of businesses participating in arbitration to ease the burden on courts.
Lawyer Nezaj-Shehu noted that while businesses are familiar with arbitration as a concept, they lack detailed information about the arbitration process. “My advice to businesses is to always have a contract in place before entering into any business relationship. The contract should be carefully reviewed by the company’s lawyer and in case of the use of arbitration, it is important to utilize the model clauses provided by arbitration institutions in order to avoid any potential jurisdictional disputes and ensure a safe resolution” said Nezaj – Shehu.
Regarding the need to spread awareness about arbitration among businesses Thompson said: “We are hoping that this event will encourage more businesses in Kosovo to consider arbitration as a viable option for dispute resolution,” further adding, “we encourage businesses to visit AmCham’s website to learn more about the arbitration clause that can be included in contracts.”
The Arbitration Week will continue with various events and discussions throughout the week, all aimed at promoting and raising awareness about the benefits of arbitration as a dispute resolution mechanism for businesses.