Arbitration Court and the Czech Data Protection Association have established cooperation

Mar 28, 2022

Arbitration Court attached to the Czech Chamber of Commerce and the Agricultural Chamber of the Czech Republic  and the Czech Data Protection Association have established cooperation in resolving disputes in the field of personal data processing. The cooperation is aimed at raising awareness of arbitration as an appropriate form of dispute resolution concerning personal data processing issues. The Association will also keep a list of arbitrators recommended for personal data protection cases. 

However, it will of course still be possible to use all arbitrators of the Arbitration Court for the given disputes. “Due to its nature, speed and secrecy, arbitration is very suitable for some disputes concerning the processing of personal data, especially for disputes between controllers and processors or joint controllers. At the same time, its non-public nature will ensure sufficient protection of the rights of the data subjects concerned,” said Vladan Rámiš, chairman of the Czech Data Protection Association. 

Juraj Szabó, Chairman of the Arbitration Court added: “I very much welcome the cooperation with the Association, which opens up space for resolving a new type of specialized disputes through arbitration. I am glad that it is our court that will be able to contribute to their quick, professional and discreet solution, which are attributes for which it has traditionally been appreciated by the business community.

Michal Nulíček and Miroslav Uřičař, members of the Czech Data Protection Association and at the same time arbitrators of the Arbitration Court add to this: “Our experience in the practical application of the GDPR shows that, among other things, disputes regarding contracts between controllers and processors are commercially and legally sensitive and very often address issues and information that are confidential and neither party is interested in making them available to the public. Good example could be disputes regarding security incidents, resp. cases of data misuse in a broader sense, specific technical measures taken and their failures etc. At the same time, it is appropriate to close these disputes as soon as possible. Thanks to these specific aspects, arbitration proceeding is very advantageous for their solution – by law, it is not public and, in fact, much faster than multi-stage court proceedings. In addition, it is less formal and flexible, which will usually also be suitable for the players within the industry.” 

It is important to stress that not only domestic disputes but also disputes between foreign entities can be resolved in arbitration proceedings before the Arbitration Court.

The list of arbitrators recommended by the Association can be found here.

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