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ings, so long as such rules are in conformity with the law of the place
of arbitration. If the parties make a determination in this regard, the
arbitral proceeding shall be carried out in accordance with such rules.
The determination of the breaches which shall affect the merits of the
award shall be made in accordance with the characteristics of the case
at hand. For instance, it can be stated that the breaches made during the
submission of evidence, and the breaches regarding the language and
place of arbitration shall be deemed as breaches that affect the merits
of the award. Arbitrators whom do not ground their decisions on cer-
tain justifications shall also be considered as a reason to set aside. In
practice the question is the breach of right to due process.
The Principle of Equality of the Parties
The parties shall be treated equally throughout the arbitral pro-
ceedings with regard to procedural issues. A different perspective of
the right to due process can be seen herein. The competence of the
arbitrators appointed by the parties may give rise to arguments on the
impartiality of the arbitrators. One of the significant points here is that
the party appointed arbitrators shall not act as if they are the attorneys
of the parties, and that they objectively observe the position of the
party who appoints them.
Competent Jurisdiction
In accordance with Art. 15 of the IAA, the action to set aside shall
be filed with the civil court of first instance. IAA Art. 3, on the other
hand, govern the competent court jurisdiction. Pursuant to such article,
the competent court and the court having jurisdiction is the civil court
of first instance located in the same place as his/her settlement or the
ordinary domicile or the workplace of the respondent; and in cases
where the respondent does not have a settlement, ordinary domicile or
workplace in Turkey, the competent court having jurisdiction shall be
the Istanbul Civil Court of First Instance. Commercial lawsuits (TCC
Art. 4) are filed with the commercial court of first instance (TCCArt. 5).
In cases where the action to set aside has a commercial characteristic, the
action should be filed with the commercial court of first instance
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NEWSLETTER 2015
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15
th
Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation, dated 21.9.2010, 4040/4663.