The resolution issued by an arbitrator or mediator to resolve a conflict between two or more parties is called an award.
Award is a concept that is used in the field of law to name the resolution issued by an arbitrator or a friendly arbitrator that allows a conflict between two or more parties to be resolved.
The arbitrator's ruling can be compared to the sentence handed down by a judge , although the judge's jurisdiction is established by law and the arbitrator's jurisdiction is within the autonomy of the will. This means that the arbitrator's decision must be accepted by the parties for the dispute to be resolved.
Generally, the parties in conflict sign an agreement before going to the arbitrator's mediation through which they undertake to accept and abide by the award proposed as resolution of the conflict.
Characteristics of an award
The award, therefore, is not required to be based on law . The parties can previously agree that the arbitration focuses on criteria of equity, beyond the legal. The execution of an arbitration award, in any case, requires a judge to order mediation.
Some of its main features are the following:
- It is binding and obligatory.
- Whoever assumes the role of arbitrator has full exercise of jurisdiction, although this is only valid temporarily (his power begins when he accepts his position and ends once he expresses his final decision in the award itself).
- The award can only contain issues directly related to the controversy to be addressed by the arbitrator, a limit similar to that which must be respected in a court, before a judge.
With respect to the last point, it is important to keep in mind that if certain points are disputed or dealt with in any way that are not within the framework of the controversy that gives rise to arbitration, then it must necessarily be annulled.
The award has an extrajudicial nature.
Referee's decision
An arbitrator's final decision must be reasoned; It is necessary that the reasons and motivations that lead to the preparation of the award can be arranged as logical pieces that explain and support the decision without the possibility of double interpretations and without giving rise to the suspicion of a favoritist type attitude.
The two parties to the dispute must see the award as an accurate and respectable decision, based on justice and seeking a transparent solution based on equity.
The existence of awards and arbitrations dates back to ancient times, since they are resolution mechanisms that operate independently of judicial and social systems. The award has always allowed conflicts to be resolved extrajudicially , with different scopes and guarantees .
Types of awards
It is possible to distinguish between various types of awards, such as awards of law , awards of equity , full awards , partial awards and final awards , for example.
The total award is one that manages to resolve all the points that gave rise to the litigation, while the partial award occurs when only one or some of the points of the claim receive a solution. The final (or firm ) award is the one in which all the controversial legal points that were submitted to the arbitral tribunal are found, as well as any decision that it has definitively determined on procedural issues or substances or those within its jurisdiction and that has qualified as an award.
A consent award is intended to elevate a transaction involving two parties to an award; In other words, it seeks to give it an executive title. When one of the parties refuses to participate in the process and the arbitral tribunal has no other choice but to do its work without its presence, finally, it is called a default award .