Arbitration Court – Sofia
of the “Legal Aid and Mediation Association” (ACS)
http://en.arbitrationcourtbg.org/index.php/en/
Positions: Natalia Alexandrova – Vice Chairperson, Arbitrator
Yanko Ninov – Arbitrator
ACS is founded in 2010 and is dealing with local and international trade and investment disputes.
ACS has over 40 arbitrators, practicing lawyers, formal judges, as well as university professors, familiar with the latest trends in the legal theory and practice. Cases are administrated in all major languages, including English, German, French, Italian and Russian. The court has seven further regional divisions covering the two major Bulgarian Black Sea ports as well as strategically located cities near state borders with Greece, Turkey, Serbia, Macedonia and Romania.
Alongside with its judicial activity ACS works for the popularization of the alternative dispute resolution in Bulgaria. Compared to other European countries this is a field that is to be developed in Bulgaria both on the legislation and practical level.
Why ACS?
- Professional qualification of the arbitrators by the ACS
The arbitrators and mediators at the ACS are experienced professionals with a solid theoretical background and professional experience as judges, lawyers and university professors. The major part of them has provided legal services to big international clients in the field of the trade and civil law.
- Time
Cases are decided timely. The average duration of a court case is 3 months to a year.
- On-line platform
ACS uses an on-line platform for remote access to the cases. This makes the filing and receiving of documents and the follow up on the cases very easy from everywhere in the world.
- Procedure costs
Compared to the greater part of Europe and America arbitration in Bulgaria is much cheaper – arbitration fees as well as supporting costs such as deposits, translations etc.
Why Bulgaria?
- The Arbitration procedure is one instance court procedure. Arbitration decisions are final and enforceable.
- Bulgaria is an EU-Member state located on the crossroad between Western and Central Europe, Russia and the Middle East.
- Bulgaria is a bordering neighbor to the most West Balkan countries.
- Bulgaria has a very good transport connection as well as to West also to the East.
We would be pleased to collaborate with other European Arbitration Institutions. Thanks to this collaboration we hope to make ACS a preferred jurisdiction for dispute resolution for the region as we will do our best to implement the good international practices in Bulgaria. We will be glad to share our experience too.
Further based on the international cooperation we would like to confirm our position by the drafting and modification of bills in Bulgaria and bringing the Bulgarian legislation in line with the European law in the area of arbitration.