This blog is inter alia aimed at spreading and improving the knowledge of arbitration in Italy, hoping that this increased knowledge would also increase its actual use.

The number of institutional arbitration proceedings is known and, with some degree of approximation, it is also possible to estimate the rough number of ad hoc proceedings.

In the light of these pieces of information, the majority of civil and commercial disputes are brought before State Courts.

The above is (at least, partly) the consequence of some biases concerning arbitration: first of all its costs (which would make it unsuitable for disputes of low/medium value), and also the perceived complexity of its rules (which could represent a further complication for the parties).

To dispel, or at least attempt to dispel these prejudices, this blog is now joined by a radio column, Arbitration in a nutshell (“Pillole di arbitrato”), broadcasted by IusLaw WebRadio.

In this radio column I have already dealt with the issue of arbitration costs, showing – at least, I hope I have shown – that arbitration is not as expensive as we think, and indeed it is almost always cheaper than proceedings in State Courts, taking account of all the relevant factors and, first of all, value of time.

I then dealt with four topics which, according to the statistics of this blog, are among those that my readers found more interesting: the relationship between arbitration and payment order and that between arbitration and bankruptcy; the enforceability of the arbitration clause under Article 1341 of Italian Civil Code and the circulation of the arbitration clause in case of assignment of credit.

The new year will begin by talking of administered arbitration.

In the meantime, I send all my readers the best wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!