By choosing Sweden as the place of arbitration, commercial parties are guaranteed the respect of the fundamental arbitral principle of party autonomy and the safeguarding of the arbitral process by independent, arbitration friendly courts. Swedish arbitration law is advanced and in line with current best practice of international arbitration.

A longstanding history

In Sweden, arbitration is the rule rather than the alternative when it comes to the settlement of commercial disputes. Swedish courts respect and support the integrity of the arbitral process and Swedish companies have since long included arbitration clauses in their contracts. The standing of arbitration in Swedish law has partly historical reasons.  Alternative forms of dispute resolution have been supported by law since the first written codes, in the early middle ages. With the founding of the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (the SCC) in 1917, the foundation was laid for Sweden to become a preferred venue also for the settlement of international disputes. In the 1970’s, the USA and the Soviet Union entered into agreements with the SCC for the resolution of commercial disputes involving parties from the two nations. China eventually followed suit with similar agreements, recognising the SCC – and Sweden – as a preferred venue for international dispute resolution. These events laid the foundation for Sweden’s reputation as the home of East-West arbitration. Although Sweden’s popularity as a centre for international arbitration stems from its rise to prominence within East-West arbitration, Sweden is today a truly global arbitration hub.

The procedural culture

Parties are essentially free to arrange their arbitrations in Sweden as they see fit. This notwithstanding, it is often the case that the procedure is somewhat influenced by the traditions at the place of arbitration, in particular if some of the arbitrators are trained in that jurisdiction. Sweden’s procedural traditions are particularly fit for international arbitration.  Swedish civil procedure is basically a mix between continental civil law and common law procedure. The procedure is contradictorial, as opposed to inquisitorial, with the parties themselves controlling the facts to be introduced. This inter alia entails cross-examinations conducted by counsel for the parties, in the same manner as in common law jurisdictions. At the same time, the legal systems of Continental Europe have influenced the Swedish procedure, for example when it comes to discovery/production of documents, where the Swedish tradition is more Civil Law than Common Law.

The international culture

As a nation, Sweden has a history of being a free trading and export dependant country, with a strong international presence.  Paired with Sweden’s reputation of being neutral and having independent, arbitration friendly courts, this makes Sweden an ideal venue for international arbitration.

Swedish substantive law

It is not unusual that parties that agree in their contract to arbitrate in Sweden, also agree that Swedish substantive law should govern their contract. Swedish legal principles on trade, contract formation and invalidity as well ascontract interpretation, correspond well to the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts, and international parties would rarely find anything in Swedish law that would surprise them. Although Sweden has no Civil Code, but a number of acts and statutes that have been further developed in case law, lawyers from Civil Law jurisdictions will feel at home when arguing and applying Swedish law.