ITALY: Regulations for New Arbitrator for Financial Disputes Approved

Tuesday May 17 2016

Commissione Nazionale per le Sovieta e la Borsa (CONSOB) has approved the regulation of the new Arbitrator for financial disputes (ACF) (Resolution No. 19602 of 4 May 2016.

The regulation allows CONSOB to start a new out-of-court system for resolving disputes. It is characterised by the mandatory membership of the intermediaries and the decision-making nature of the procedure, similar to the Financial Banking Arbitrator (ABF) of Banca d’Italia. The objective is to provide an effective instrument to directly protect the interests of the investors. The regulation was adopted pursuant to Art. 2, paragraphs 5-bis and 5-ter of Italian Legislative Decree No. 179/2007.

Access to the Arbitrator is completely free for the investor and shorter timelines are anticipated for reaching a decision (90 days following completion of the dossier containing the petition, the observations and the documentation produced by the parties).

An electronic procedure is anticipated for sending and managing the appeal in order to guarantee that the system operates efficiently and promptly. This will allow the investor to be guided during the preparation phase of the appeal, avoiding possibly sending incomplete and inconsistent applications. The system will make it possible to share in real time all the documents produced by the parties during the procedure, ensuring speed and economy in the fulfilments. However, in order to accommodate the needs of those who are less familiar with computer tools (and who do not intend to use the support of solicitors or consumer associations), it will be possible to send hard copies of the applications for two years.

Click on the link above for further details.