In highly complex sectors such as engineering, infrastructure, mining, and energy, risk is embedded in the very structure of the business. Political uncertainty, economic volatility, regulatory pressure, and increasing judicialization directly affect contract performance. When these factors are neither anticipated nor addressed in an integrated manner, the outcome tends to [...]

The study “Arbitration in Numbers I 2025 Survey”, conducted by Prof. Selma Ferreira Lemes since 2005 with the technical assistance of Vera Cecília Monteiro de Barros and Bruno Hellmeister Lico Canal, and co-organized by Canal Arbitragem, consolidates data from 2023 and 2024 and provides an updated overview of institutional arbitration [...]

In sectors such as construction, time is not merely a scheduling variable; it is directly related to cost, risk, and strategic decision-making. A dispute that drags on for years in the judiciary can compromise a company’s cash flow, affect the continuity of the project, strain commercial relationships, and increase uncertainties [...]

In complex business contracts, especially in the construction sector, conflict rarely arises as an isolated event. It usually stems from small frictions: a technical disagreement, misaligned expectations, an adjustment made under schedule pressure. When there is no clear path to address these issues, the next almost automatic step is litigation, [...]

After discussing party autonomy and the possibility of choosing specialized arbitrators, we arrive at another element highly valued in business practice: confidentiality. Although the Arbitration Act does not automatically impose confidentiality, it is very common for the arbitration agreement or the rules of the arbitral institution chosen by the parties [...]

A service agreement is essentially a contract for activity [1]. You hire someone to perform a service, and the focus is on the activity and its continuity, not on the delivery of a specific “result” as such. This model is suitable when what is sought is the mere performance of [...]

If, in the first text, we understood that the parties may “design” the procedure itself, we now move on to a direct consequence of that autonomy: the opportunity to select who will decide the dispute. This is one of the most widely recognized advantages of arbitration, as it allows the [...]

In the engineering and infrastructure ecosystem, the occurrence of claims is often a reality. The contract is signed, construction begins, and soon a deviation may arise—especially where records are poorly maintained or decisions are unclear. Claims consume time, damage reputation, and generate costs. However, they are not inevitable. With strategic [...]

The essence of arbitration lies in the parties’ freedom of choice, as it stems from the principle of party autonomy, given that the parties may decide how, by whom, and in what manner their disputes will be resolved. This principle can be seen as the “driving force” of arbitral proceedings, [...]

Imagine the following scenario: your company enters into a multimillion-dollar contract with a construction contractor to build a major development. The numbers look good, the schedule seems feasible, and the partners are experienced. Everything appears perfect. Until, months later, the project is halted because the contractor is being sued for [...]