According to article 477 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the syndicate has the obligation to notify the co-owners of the subject of a legal claim to inform them, within five days of receipt of the notification. However, I sent a notice of arbitration to the directors by registered mail. I then forwarded the notice with the proof of receipt to a Mediation and Arbitration Centre. Question: Does a notice of arbitration fall into this category?
Answer: Article 477 of the Code of Civil Procedure states that the application relating to divided co-ownership of an immovable is notified to the syndicate of co-owners, which must inform all the co-owners of the subject matter of the application within five days after the notification. The syndicate of co-owners must send a notice to the co-owners to inform them that legal proceedings have been instituted against it. The notice must be given within five days of its receipt (notification) and must specify the subject matter of the legal proceeding. Therefore, the following question arises: does a notice of arbitration constitute an application relating to the divided co-ownership of an immovable?
A notice of request for arbitration constitutes an application relating to divided co-ownership of an immovable within the meaning of article 477 of the Code of Civil Procedure. The syndicate of co-owners must thus notify, within five days of notification, each co-owner of the subject of the request for arbitration.
The arbitral proceedings begin with the notification of a request or notice of arbitration from one party to the other, specifying the subject matter of the dispute. Arbitration is probably the most well-known and popular method of dispute resolution. It can replace the trial and the decision of an arbitrator is usually final and without appeal (unless the rules of application and public order have not been respected). It also has the force of res judicata between the parties. Unlike court decisions, arbitral awards are enforceable only after they have been homologated. This means that if the losing party refuses to comply with an award, the successful party may request that it be homologated by a competent court. Once this is done, an arbitral award will be subject to enforcement. It should be noted that a judgment condemning the syndicate to pay a sum of money is enforceable against it and against each of the persons who were co-owners at the time the cause of action arose, in proportion to the relative value of its fraction. This further justifies the need for the syndicate to notify each co-owner of the subject matter of the notice of arbitration.
