Article 328. Territorial Scope
This Agreement applies to:
(a) the territories to which the Treaty on the European Union and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union are applicable, and under the conditions laid down in those Treaties; and
(b) the territory of Gibraltar.
Article 329. Relationship with other Agreements
1. This Agreement is not a supplementing agreement to the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, as defined in Article 2 (Supplementing agreements) of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
2. This Agreement and any supplementing agreement applies without prejudice to any earlier bilateral agreement concerning Gibraltar between the United Kingdom, of the one part, and the Union, of the other part. The Parties reaffirm their obligations to implement any such agreement.
Article 330. Review
The Parties shall jointly review the implementation of this Agreement and supplementing agreements and any matters related thereto four years after the entry into force of this Agreement and regularly thereafter.
Article 331. Confidential Information
1. Nothing in this Agreement or in any supplementing agreement shall be construed as requiring a Party to make available confidential information, the disclosure of which would impede law enforcement, or otherwise be contrary to the public interest, or which would prejudice the legitimate commercial interests of particular enterprises, public or private, except where an arbitration tribunal requires such confidential information in dispute settlement proceedings under Part Six or a panel of experts under Title I of Part Three. In such cases, the arbitration tribunal shall ensure that confidentiality is fully protected in accordance with Annex 29 on Rules of Procedure.
2. When a Party submits information to the Cooperation Council or to Specialised Committees that is considered confidential under its laws and regulations, the other Party shall treat that information as confidential, unless the submitting Party agrees otherwise.
Article 332. Classified Information and Sensitive Non-classified Information
1. Nothing in this Agreement or in any supplementing agreement shall be construed as requiring a Party to make available classified information.
2. The Parties shall agree on handling instructions to ensure the protection of sensitive non classified and classified information and material exchanged between them.
Article 333. Integral Parts of this Agreement
1. The Protocols, Annexes, Appendices and footnotes to this Agreement shall form an integral part of this Agreement.
2. Each of the Annexes to this Agreement, including its appendices, shall form an integral part of the Part, Title, Chapter or Protocol that refers to that Annex or to which reference is made in that Annex.
Article 334. Termination
Either Party may terminate this Agreement by written notification through diplomatic channels. This Agreement and any supplementing agreement shall cease to be in force on the first day of the twelfth month following the date of notification.
Article 335. Authentic Texts
This Agreement shall be drawn up in duplicate in the Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Irish, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish and Swedish languages, each text being equally authentic.
Article 336. Entry Into Force and Application
1. This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the month following that in which both Parties have notified each other that they have completed their respective internal requirements and procedures for establishing their consent to be bound.
2. The Parties may agree to provisionally apply this Agreement from a date prior to the day referred to in paragraph 1, provided that prior to the date from which this Agreement is provisionally applied the Parties have notified each other of the fact that the implementation plan referred to in Article 7 and the administrative arrangements referred to in Articles 29, 33, 38, 55, 56, 251, 260, 265 and SSC.31 are in effect and have been fully implemented, and that the measures described in Article 258 are in place.
3. Provisional application shall cease on the day referred to in paragraph 1.
4. As from the date from which this Agreement is provisionally applied, the Parties shall understand references in this Agreement to "the date of entry into force of this Agreement" or to "the entry into force of this Agreement" as references to the date from which this Agreement is provisionally applied.
5. Titles I to IV of Part Two, Title II of Part Three and Title III of Part Four shall cease to apply as from the day on which the administrative arrangements referred to in Articles 29, 33, 38, 55, 56, 251, 260, 265 and SSC.31 are suspended or terminated in accordance with the provisions thereof. They shall start applying anew as from the day on which the suspension of these administrative arrangements is lifted or on which new administrative arrangements are concluded.
Conclusion
Attachments
ANNEX 29. RULES OF PROCEDURE FOR DISPUTE SETTLEMENT
I. Definitions
1. For the purposes of Part Six (Dispute settlement) of this Agreement and of these Rules of Procedure, the following definitions apply:
(a) "administrative staff", in respect of an arbitrator, means individuals under the direction and control of an arbitrator, other than assistants;
(b) "adviser" means an individual retained by a Party to advise or assist that Party in connection with the arbitration proceedings;
(c) "arbitration tribunal" means a tribunal established under Article DS.7 (Establishment of an arbitration tribunal) of Part Six (Dispute Settlement);
(d) "arbitrator" means a member of the arbitration tribunal;
(e) "assistant" means an individual who, under the terms of appointment and under the direction and control of an arbitrator, conducts research or provides assistance to that arbitrator;
(f) "complaining Party" means any Party that requests the establishment of an arbitration tribunal under Article 306 (Establishment of an arbitration tribunal);
(g) "registry" means an external body with relevant expertise appointed by the Parties to provide administrative support for the proceedings;
(h) "respondent Party" means the Party that is alleged to be in violation of the covered provisions; and
(i) "representative of a Party" means an employee or any individual appointed by a government department, agency or any other public entity of a Party who represents the Party for the purposes of a dispute under this Agreement or any supplementing agreement.
II. Notifications
2. Any request, notice, written submission or other document (hereinafter referred to as "notification") of:
(a) the arbitration tribunal shall be sent to both Parties at the same time;
(b) a Party, which is addressed to the arbitration tribunal, shall be copied to the other Party at the same time; and
(c) a Party, which is addressed to the other Party, shall be copied to the arbitration tribunal at the same time, as appropriate.
3. Any notification shall be made by e-mail or, where appropriate, any other means of telecommunication that provides a record of the sending thereof. Unless proven otherwise, such notification shall be deemed to be delivered on the date of its sending.
4. All notifications shall be addressed to the Legal Service of the European Commission and to the Legal Adviser of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office of the United Kingdom, respectively.
5. Minor errors of a clerical nature in a request, notice, written submission or other document related to the arbitration tribunal proceedings may be corrected by the delivery of a new document clearly indicating the changes.
6. If the last day for the delivery of a document falls on a non-working day of the institutions of the European Union or of the government of the United Kingdom or of Gibraltar, the time period for the delivery of the document shall end on the first following working day.
III. Appointment of arbitrators
7. If an arbitrator is selected by lot, pursuant to Article 306 (Establishment of an arbitration tribunal)of Part Six (Dispute Settlement), the co-chair of the Cooperation Council of the complaining Party shall promptly inform the co-chair of the respondent Party of the date, time and venue of the lot. The respondent Party may, if it so chooses, be present during the lot. In any event, the lot shall be carried out with the Party or Parties that are present.
8. The co-chair of the complaining Party shall notify, in writing, each individual who has been selected to serve as an arbitrator of their selection. Each individual shall confirm their availability to both Parties within five days after the date of delivery of the notification.
9. For the purposes of Article 306 (Establishment of an arbitration tribunal), the co-chair of the Cooperation Council of the complaining Party shall select by lot:
(a) an arbitrator from the individuals who have been formally proposed by a Party as arbitrators for its sub-list pursuant to points (a) or (b) of Article 319 (List of arbitrators), as applicable, or, in the absence of those, from the individuals who have been formally proposed by the other Party for that Party's sub-list; and
(b) a chairperson from the individuals who have been formally proposed by one or both Parties for the sub-list of chairpersons pursuant to point (c) of Article 319 (List of arbitrators).
10. The Parties may appoint a registry to assist in the organisation and conduct of specific dispute settlement proceedings on the basis of ad-hoc arrangements or on the basis of arrangements adopted by the Cooperation Council pursuant to Article 326 (Annexes).
11. The arbitrators shall accept their appointment by signing the appointment contracts. The Parties shall endeavour to ensure that, at the latest by the time all the selected arbitrators have confirmed their availability, they have agreed on the remuneration and the reimbursement of expenses of the arbitrators and assistants, and have prepared the necessary appointment contracts, with a view to having them signed promptly. The remuneration and expenses of the arbitrators shall be based on WTO standards. The remuneration and expenses of an assistant or assistants of an arbitrator shall not exceed 50 % of the remuneration of that arbitrator.
IV. Organisational meeting
12. Unless the Parties agree otherwise, they shall meet the arbitration tribunal within seven days after its establishment in order to determine such matters as the Parties or the arbitration tribunal deem appropriate, including the timetable of the arbitration procedure. Arbitrators and representatives of the Parties may take part in this meeting through any means, including telephone or video-conference.
V. Written submissions
13. The complaining Party shall deliver its written submission no later than 30 days after the date of establishment of the arbitration tribunal. The respondent Party shall deliver its written submission no later than 30 days after the date of delivery of the written submission of the complaining Party.
VI. Operation of the arbitration tribunal
14. The chairperson of the arbitration tribunal shall preside all its meetings. The arbitration tribunal may delegate to the chairperson the authority to make administrative and procedural decisions.
15. Unless otherwise provided in Part Six (Dispute Settlement) or in these Rules of Procedure, the arbitration tribunal may conduct its activities through any means, including telephone, video-conference or other electronic means of communication.
16. Only arbitrators may take part in the deliberations of the arbitration tribunal, but the arbitration tribunal may permit their assistants to be present at its deliberations.
17. The drafting of any decision and report shall remain the exclusive responsibility of the arbitration tribunal and shall not be delegated.
18. Where a procedural question arises that is not covered by Part Six (Dispute Settlement)or its Annexes, the arbitration tribunal, after consulting the Parties, may adopt an appropriate procedure that is compatible with those provisions.
19. When the arbitration tribunal considers that there is a need to modify any of the time periods for the arbitration procedure other than the time periods set out in Part Six (Dispute Settlement) or to make any other procedural or administrative adjustment, it shall inform the Parties, in writing and after consultations of the Parties, of the reasons for the change or adjustment and of the time period or adjustment needed.
VII. Replacement
20. When a Party considers that an arbitrator does not comply with the requirements of Annex 30 (Code of Conduct for Arbitrators) and for this reason should be replaced, that Party shall notify the other Party within 15 days after the date on which it obtained sufficient evidence of the arbitrator's alleged non-compliance.
21. The Parties shall consult within 15 days after the date of the notification referred to in Rule 20. They shall inform the arbitrator of the alleged non-compliance and may request the arbitrator to take steps to remedy it. They may also, if they agree, remove the arbitrator and select a new arbitrator in accordance with Article 306 (Establishment of an arbitration tribunal).
22. If the Parties fail to agree on the need to replace an arbitrator other than the chairperson of the arbitration tribunal, either Party may request that this matter be referred to the chairperson of the arbitration tribunal, whose decision shall be final.
If the chairperson of the arbitration tribunal finds that the arbitrator does not comply with the requirements of Annex 30 (Code of Conduct for Arbitrators), the new arbitrator shall be selected in accordance with Article 306 (Establishment of an arbitration tribunal).
23. If the Parties fail to agree on the need to replace the chairperson, either Party may request that this matter be referred to one of the other individuals on the sub-list of chairpersons established pursuant to Article 319 (List of arbitrators). Their name shall be drawn by lot by the co-chair of the Cooperation Council from the requesting Party, or the chair's delegate. The decision by the selected person on the need to replace the chairperson shall be final.
If this person finds that the chairperson does not comply with the requirements of Annex 30 (Code of Conduct for Arbitrators), the chairperson shall be selected in accordance with Article 306 (Establishment of an arbitration tribunal).
VIII. Hearings
24. On the basis of the timetable determined pursuant to Rule 12, after consulting with the Parties and the other arbitrators, the chairperson of the arbitration tribunal shall notify to the Parties the date, time and venue of the hearing. That information shall be made publicly available by the Party in which the hearing takes place, unless the hearing is closed to the public.
25. Unless the Parties agree otherwise, the hearing shall be held in Brussels if the complaining Party is the United Kingdom and in London if the complaining Party is the European Union.
The respondent Party shall be in charge of the logistical administration of the hearing and bear the expenses derived therefrom.
26. The arbitration tribunal may convene additional hearings if the Parties so agree.
27. All arbitrators shall be present during the entirety of the hearing.
28. Unless the Parties agree otherwise, the following persons may attend the hearing, irrespective of whether the hearing is open to the public or not:
(a) representatives of a Party;
(b) advisers;
(c) assistants and administrative staff;
(d) interpreters, translators and court reporters of the arbitration tribunal; and
(e) experts, as decided by the arbitration tribunal pursuant to Article DS.19 (Receipt of information).
29. No later than five days before the date of a hearing, each Party shall deliver to the arbitration tribunal and to the other Party a list of names of the persons who will make oral arguments or presentations in the hearing on behalf of that Party and of other representatives and advisers who will be attending the hearing.
30. The arbitration tribunal shall conduct the hearing in the following manner, ensuring that the Parties are afforded equal time in both argument and rebuttal argument:
(a) Argument
(i) argument of the complaining Party; and
(ii) argument of the respondent Party.
(b) Rebuttal Argument
(i) reply of the complaining Party; and
(ii) counter-reply of the respondent Party.
31. The arbitration tribunal may direct questions to either Party at any time during the hearing.
32. The arbitration tribunal shall arrange for a recording of the hearing to be delivered to the Parties as soon as possible after the hearing.
33. Each Party may deliver a supplementary written submission concerning any matter that arose during the hearing within 10 days after the date of the hearing.
IX. Questions in writing
34. The arbitration tribunal may at any time during the proceedings submit questions in writing to one or both Parties. Any questions submitted to one Party shall be copied to the other Party.
35. Each Party shall provide the other Party with a copy of its response to the questions submitted by the arbitration tribunal. The other Party shall have an opportunity to provide comments in writing on that response within five days after the delivery of such copy.
X. Confidentiality
36. Each Party and the arbitration tribunal shall treat as confidential any information submitted by the other Party to the arbitration tribunal that the other Party has designated as confidential. When a Party submits to the arbitration tribunal a written submission which contains confidential information, it shall also provide, within 15 days, a submission without the confidential information, which shall be disclosed to the public.
37. Nothing in these Rules of Procedure shall preclude a Party from disclosing statements of its own positions to the public to the extent that, when making reference to information submitted by the other Party, it does not disclose any information designated by the other Party as confidential.
38. The arbitration tribunal shall hold the relevant parts of the session in private when the submission and arguments of a Party contains confidential information. The Parties shall maintain the confidentiality of the arbitration tribunal hearings when the hearings are held in closed session.
XI. Ex parte contacts
39. The arbitration tribunal shall not meet or communicate with a Party in the absence of the other Party.
40. An arbitrator shall not discuss any aspect of the subject matter of the proceedings with one Party or both Parties in the absence of the other arbitrators.
41. A Party shall not have any contact with an arbitrator. Any contact between a Party and a person who is under consideration for selection as an arbitrator shall be limited to issues relating to that person's availability and the appointment contract.
XII. Amicus curiae submissions
42. Unless the Parties agree otherwise within five days after the date of establishment of the arbitration tribunal, the arbitration tribunal may receive unsolicited written submissions from natural persons of a Party or legal persons established in the territory of a Party that are independent from the governments of the Parties, (hereinafter referred to as "amicus curiae submissions"), provided that they:
(a) are received by the arbitration tribunal within 10 days of the date of the establishment of the arbitration tribunal;
(b) are concise and in no case longer than 15 pages, including any Annexes, typed at double space;
(c) are directly relevant to a factual or a legal issue under consideration by the arbitration tribunal;
(d) contain a description of the person making the submission, including for a natural person their nationality and for a legal person its place of establishment, the nature of its activities, its legal status, general objectives, its source of financing and any controlling entity;
(f) specify the nature of the interest that the person has in the arbitration proceedings; and
(g) are drafted in the working language determined in accordance with Rules 46 or 47 of these Rules of Procedure.
43. The amicus curiae submissions shall be delivered to the Parties for comments. The Parties may submit comments, within 10 days after the date of their delivery to the Parties, to the arbitration tribunal.
44. The arbitration tribunal shall list in its report all the amicus curiae submissions it has received pursuant to Rule 42. The arbitration tribunal shall not be obliged to address in its report the arguments made in those submissions. If the arbitration tribunal addresses arguments made therein, it shall also take into account any comments made by the Parties pursuant to Rule 43.
XIII. Urgent cases
45. In cases of urgency as referred to in Article 310 (Urgent proceedings), the arbitration tribunal, after consulting the Parties, shall adjust, as appropriate, the time periods set out in these Rules of Procedure. The arbitration tribunal shall notify the Parties of those adjustments.
XIV. Working language and translation
46. The language of proceedings before the arbitration tribunal shall be English.
47. Reports and decisions of the arbitration tribunal shall be issued in English.
48. If a Party submits a document in a language that is not English, it shall at the same time submit a translation thereof at its own costs.
XV. Other procedures
49. The time periods laid down in these Rules of Procedure shall be adjusted in line with the special time periods provided for the delivery of a ruling, report or decision by the arbitration tribunal pursuant to Article 314 (Reasonable period of time), Article 315 (Compliance review), Article 316 (Temporary remedies) and Article 317 (Review of any measure taken to comply after the adoption of temporary measures) of Part Six (Dispute Settlement).
ANNEX 30. CODE OF CONDUCT FOR ARBITRATORS
I. Definitions
1. In this Code of Conduct:
(a) "arbitrator" means a member of an arbitration tribunal;
(b) the definition of "assistant" set out in the Rules of Procedure (Annex 29) shall apply; and
(c) "candidate" means an individual who is under consideration for selection as an arbitrator pursuant to 306 (Establishment of an arbitration tribunal) or Article 319 (List of arbitrators)of Part Six (Dispute Settlement).
II. Governing principles
2. In order to preserve the integrity and impartiality of the dispute settlement mechanism candidates and arbitrators shall:
(a) get acquainted with this Code of Conduct;
(b) be independent and impartial;
(c) avoid direct or indirect conflicts of interests;
(d) avoid impropriety or bias and the appearance of impropriety or bias;
(e) observe high standards of conduct;
(f) not take instructions from any organisation or government with regard to dispute settlement under this Agreement or any supplementing agreement; and
(g) not be influenced by self-interest, outside pressure, political considerations, public clamour, loyalty to a Party or fear of criticism.
3. Arbitrators shall not directly, or indirectly, incur any obligation or accept any benefit that would in any way interfere, or appear to interfere, with the proper performance of their duties.
4. Arbitrators shall not use their position on the arbitration tribunal to advance any personal or private interests. Arbitrators shall avoid actions that may create the impression that others are in a special position to influence them.
5. Arbitrators shall not allow past or present financial, business, professional, family or social relationships or responsibilities to influence their conduct or judgement.
6. Arbitrators shall avoid entering into any relationship or acquiring any financial interest that is likely to affect their impartiality or that might reasonably create an appearance of impropriety or bias.
III. Disclosure obligations