Common use of Dispute Settlement Proceedings of the Arbitration Panel Clause in Contracts

Dispute Settlement Proceedings of the Arbitration Panel. 1. The rules and procedures set out in this Article, Annexes 7 (Rules of Procedure) and 8 (Code of Conduct for Arbitrators and Mediators) shall govern the dispute settlement proceedings of an arbitration panel. 2. Unless the Parties agree otherwise, they shall meet the arbitration panel within 10 days of its establishment in order to determine all matters that the Parties or the arbitration panel deem appropriate, including the timetable of the proceedings and the remuneration and expenses of the arbitrators in accordance with Annex 7 (Rules of Procedure). Arbitrators and representatives of the Parties may take part in this meeting via telephone or video conference. 3. The venue of the hearing shall be decided by mutual consent of the Parties. If the Parties do not agree on the venue of the hearing, it shall be held in Brussels if the complaining Party is Viet Nam and in Ha Noi if the complaining Party is the EU Party. 4. Any hearing shall be open to the public unless otherwise provided for in Annex 7 (Rules of Procedure). 5. In accordance with Annex 7 (Rules of Procedure), the Parties shall be given the opportunity to attend any of the presentations, statements, arguments or rebuttals in the proceedings. Any information or written submission submitted to the arbitration panel by a Party, including any comments on the descriptive part of the interim report, responses to questions by the arbitration panel and comments by a Party on those responses, shall be made available to the other Party. 6. Unless the Parties agree otherwise within three days of the date of establishment of the arbitration panel, the arbitration panel may receive, in accordance with Annex 7 (Rules of Procedure), unsolicited written submissions (amicus curiae submissions) from natural or legal person established in the territory of a Party. 7. For its internal deliberations, the arbitration panel shall meet in closed session where only arbitrators take part. The arbitration panel may also permit its assistants to be present at its deliberations. The deliberations of the arbitration panel and the documents submitted to it shall be kept confidential. ARTICLE 3.9