The Litigation and Arbitration team discusses about the Appropiate Means of Dispute Resolution and the new Collective Action Law | El Confidencial

Large law firms foresee a busy year ahead and warn of the doubts and uncertainty surrounding the use of Appropriate Means of Dispute Resolution, which risk becoming a formality.

The Appropriate Means of Dispute Resolution Los Medios are an initiative to reduce the burden on the courts. However, their practical application is generating doubts and will require judicial pronouncements, which distances them from the purpose for which they were created.

In the words of the Litigation and Arbitration team ‘We fear, and hope we are wrong, that the introduction of ADR will serve to generate additional angles of procedural uncertainty and litigiousness linked to the main proceedings’.

With reference to the new Law on Collective Actions, users, through consumer associations, will be able to file collective claims against companies that have violated their rights in order to be financially compensated. This represents a radical reform of the system of collective actions in defence of the interests of consumers and users provided for in the current procedural regulation. Gómez-Acebo & Pombo’s Litigation and Arbitration team welcomes the fact that it is limited to associations and entities.

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