Insights

* Authors: Prof. Dr. George Dimitrov, Vassil Alexandrov, Veselin Georgiev, Ivan Georgiev, Rossen Bossev, Kalin Kalpakchiev, Assoc. Prof. Kristian Takov, Assoc. Prof. Ekaterina Salkova, Velislav Velichkov, Dimo Gospodinov, Albena Komitova, Dimitar Markov * The publication is in Bulgarian.

The identification of the seat of arbitration is undisputedly one of the most important features of an arbitration clause, as it determines lex arbitri and, consequently, which courts will have supervisory jurisdiction over the arbitration. According to Bulgarian law, the choice of seat of arbitration may also predetermine the possibilities for enforcement of an arbitral award. This view is supported in Article 117, Item 1 of the Bulgarian Private International Law Code (PILC). According to the said provision, the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards requires that a foreign tribunal should be competent under Bulgarian law. The current Bulgarian legislation, however, causes considerable disputes in relation to when an arbitral tribunal seated abroad is deemed competent to hear the dispute for the purposes of an enforcement procedure in Bulgaria.

Prof. Dr. George Dimitrov gives a brief overview of some of the most recent legislative developments in Bulgaria.

The security measure ‘distraints on bank accounts’ (although from a legal and factual point of view it is more accurate to use the term ‘distraint on receivables from banks’) is often applied by the court under the condition that the distraint should be imposed consecutively from bank to bank, where the distraint is imposed on another bank account only after ascertaining insufficiency of funds in the first one for payment of the debt. On the one hand, this manner of proceeding aims at protecting the interest of the debtor, but on the other hand, it poses many risks for the creditor and its chance to receive adequate protection of its rights.

Any participant in the market aims at soliciting clients. Holding promotional campaigns where consumers are offered certain bonuses and prizes bound with the purchase of a particular product is a common business practice. Promotions are one of the main methods for advertising and marketing of the commodities and services offered by a company. At the same time, however, promotions have positive influence on the market only if held in accordance with certain rules of fair market conduct. The Bulgarian Competition Protection Act (CPA) provides such rules and the latter should be taken into account by any company planning to organize a promotion, which involves offering of bonuses and prizes to clients.