The Settlement of Business Disputes in the Court in Vietnam

According to the current law, there are currently 4 methods of resolving business disputes, including: negotiation, mediation, arbitration and court. The parties of a dispute have the right to choose any of the methods of resolution to resolve the dispute when it occurs. Through this article, Phuoc and Partners will list a number of issues concerning the settlement of business disputes in the court.

 The duration of preparation for the settlement of business disputes in the court

To implement the right to initiate a lawsuit, the plaintiff must prepare the following matters:

  Definite the jurisdiction of court

• Definite jurisdiction by civil cases: pursuant to Article 30 of the Civil Procedure Code 2015, disputes related to business or trade fall under the jurisdiction of the court.
• Definite jurisdiction by court level: pursuant to Article 36.1 of the Civil Procedure Code 2015, disputes arising from business or trade activities among individuals, organizations with business registration, which are all for the profit purposes fall under the jurisdiction of the People’s courts of districts. The remaining disputes will fall under the jurisdiction of the People’s courts of provinces.
• Definite jurisdiction by territory: the definition made in accordance with Article 39 of the Civil Procedure Code 2015

  Draft a petition

In order to prepare for participation in the settlement of business disputes in the court, the plaintiff must have the petition filled with all the information as prescribed in Article 189.4 of the Civil Procedure Code 2015). The plaintiff should use the form No. 23  promulgated with Resolution No. 01/2017 / NQ-HDTP dated 13 January 2017 of the Council of Judges of the Supreme People’s court.

  Prepare documents and evidence to prove the claim

The plaintiff requesting the settlement of business disputes in the court must prove that there exists a conflict of rights and interests with the defendant by presenting evidence and supporting documents. When the parties are unable to gather evidence and file a request, the court will participate in the evidence gathering process.

  File a petition

The plaintiff must send a petition enclosed with documents and evidence proving the infringed rights and interests and can submit the petition directly in the court or by courier.

 Procedures for the settlement of business disputes in the court

Within 08 working days of receipt of the petition, the court must make one of the following decisions:

• Requesting amendments and supplements to the petition;
• Carrying out procedures to accept the case according to normal procedures or simplified procedures if the case meets the conditions to be resolved according to simplified procedures as prescribed in Article 317.1 of the Civil Procedure Code 2015
• Transferring the petition to the court and notify the petitioner if the case falls under the jurisdiction of another court; or
• Returning the petition to the petitioner if the case does not fall under the jurisdiction of court.

In case of accepting the case, the court will issue a notice to the plaintiff. The time to advance court fees is within 07 days from the date of receipt of the notice.

Depending on the nature of the case, the time to prepare for the trial of the settlement of business disputes in the court will last from 4 to 6 months. During the trial preparation period, the court shall conduct mediation, except cases that are not allowed to conciliate (Article 206 of the Civil Procedure Code 2015) or cannot be conciliated (Article 207 of the Civil Procedure Code 2015) or the case shall be settled according to simplified procedures. Within 30 days from the date of issuance of the decision to bring the case to trial, the court must open a court hearing; may be postponed for no more than 30 days.

Above is an overview of of the settlement of business disputes in the court in Vietnam in current. If you have trouble with legal issues regarding of the settlement of business disputes in the court in Vietnam, please contact us: Phuoc & Partners is a professional consulting firm established in Vietnam and currently has nearly 100 members working in three offices in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and Danang. Phuoc & Partners is also rated as one of the leading consulting firms specializing in business law in Vietnam that has leading practice areas in the legal market such as Labour and Employment, Taxation, Merger and acquisition, Litigation. We are confident in providing customers with optimal and effective service.