NA scrutinises Council’s amendments to Arbitration Bill

Thinley Namgay

The National Assembly (NA) yesterday reviewed and cleared 47 out of the 182 sections of the Alternative Dispute Resolution (Amendment) Bill 2024, during its third reading.

The deliberations will resume today with legislators still wrestling with questions of independence, professionalism and appeal rights for the country’s lone arbitration centre.

The chairperson of the Legislative Committee (LC), Member of Parliament (MP) from Nyishog-Saephu Constituency, Kuenga, presented the Committee’s review report on the Bill.

The House deliberated on the amendments made by the National Council (NC), and the LC’s recommendations compared to the original provisions of the Act.   

One of the key changes was in Section 5, where both the NC and LC suggested changing the title of the administrator of the ADR Centre from Chief Administrator to Secretary General.

The LC presented that “Secretary General” sounds more formal and pertinent considering the global arbitration system. However, some members opposed the change, stating that there is no need to change the title as no additional benefits or responsibilities were reflected. The House also stiffened the job criteria. The Secretary General must now hold a law degree and at least have 15 years’ work experience, up from a decade under current law. Opponents argued the steeper bar could shrink the pool of qualified candidates, but the amendment survived a floor vote 26–15.

Another flash-point was staff status. The 2013 Act requires civil servant employees of the Centre to resign upon appointment. The committee proposed dropping that rule and opening positions to private-sector professionals, warning that a blanket resignation clause would deter talent. By a 29-member majority, MPs endorsed the change, while pledging to safeguard the Centre’s autonomy through future regulations.

Regarding Section 17 on the list of arbitrators, the NC had amended it to state that the “ADR Centre shall maintain and update lists of arbitrators for domestic arbitration and international commercial arbitration, and that a Bhutanese arbitrator may be listed in both”.

The LC amended this as: “The Centre shall maintain and periodically update: (a) a list of Bhutanese arbitrators who qualify for Domestic Arbitration and, (b) a list of arbitrators, regardless of nationality, who are eligible to serve in international commercial arbitration.” The House voted in favour of the LC’s amendment.

The NC inserted a new subsection under Section 21 stating that the government shall make adequate financial provision for the sustainable operation of the ADR Centre. The NA fully supported this, but concerns about the Centre’s independence were raised.

MPs also debated on the NC amended Section 39, which states: “If a party is aggrieved by an order issued under Section 38 of this Act, he or she may appeal to the High Court within ten working days of the receipt of the order. The decision of the High Court shall not be subject to appeal”.

Members questioned why a party cannot appeal to the Supreme Court based on their rights. However, the LC clarified that, for timely service delivery and in line with international best practices, limiting the appeal to the High Court is reasonable, as appealing to the Supreme Court takes time. The House instructed the committee to revisit the clause before final passage.

The ADR (Amendment) Bill of Bhutan 2024 originated from the NC and was adopted during the 34th NC Session in December 2024. It was also discussed during the 33rd session of the NC.

The Bill was introduced as a Private Member’s Bill in the NA this time. The first and second readings of the Bill were held on May 26.

The amendments to the ADR Act 2013 aim to strengthen the legal framework for alternative dispute resolution in Bhutan by professionalising the Bhutan ADR Centre, enhancing institutional integrity, and aligning national practices with international standards.