Alternative Cross-Border Consumer Dispute Resolution

Abstract

The development of private international law and international civil proceedings law in the area of consumer protection does not solve completely the problems faced by the weaker party when making cross-border consumer contracts. Conflict rules and jurisdiction rules are addressed primarily to the national court, but for economic reasons, consumers rarely seek protection of their rights in court if the case is related to the legal orders of several countries. The solution of this problem lies in the development of more flexible, rapid and inexpensive way to resolve disputes out of court. The examination of the EU Directive on Alternative Dispute Resolution leads to conclusion that it only sets basic standards for the out-of-court consumer dispute resolution industry, but contains no specific procedural rules. In addition, the article provides a critical view of the EU Regulation on the online dispute resolution: Webplatform for the consumer disputes resolution, created on its basis, has very limited functionality and essentially performs only mediation, facilitating the consumer to find the national alternative dispute resolution agency but not exercising proper arbitration of consumer disputes. Great hopes are vested in the UNCITRAL Rules on Online Dispute Resolution, under development: in addition to the principles and standards this document contains specific procedural rules. It is noted that the UNCITRAL Rules will be an important addition to the Regulation on online dispute resolution. However, in view of the universal international character of the UNCITRAL Rules, as a soft law act, they can be used not only in the European Union, but also in all other countries, where the law provides for the possibility of online dispute resolution. As an example of the successful online platform for the settlement of low-value disputes the author analyzes the experience of the Chinese e-commerce portal. A study of its Online Transactions Dispute Rules confirmed that in comparison with the procedure for resolving such disputes at the state courts, online arbitration is a faster and more effective alternative.