15:18 Jan 26 

I'd be very sad. Autonomy, federalism, total equality in a union (you've got heaps of that already) is fine by me, but I'd find a complete break very sad. As a geordie, I'm not sure that I'm English or Scottish anyway.

14:56 Jan 26 

into the sunset then?

14:56 Jan 26 

into the North Atlantic, its written in the referenda statutes.

14:48 Jan 26 

arbitration is not a clear cut subject, and you can probably arrange arbitral tribunals along a continuum ranging from the official bodies right through to informal internal bodies more akin to boards. That said however this clause looks too similar to a standard arbitration clause to assume that it is anything other than ordinary arbitration.
By the way, if you want a really endless legal debate we could start talking about referenda....

14:42 Jan 26 

that you might convince me Tam. Perhaps I was confusing it with the collegio dei probivir. OK it is voluntary. It is not "ad hoc" arbitration performed autonomously by shareholders of the company, because the shareholders must follow the rules and procedures for arbitration laid down in articles of association or alternatively go to court (some statutes require all arbiters to be selected by the local court). It is not mandatory "institutional arbitration" which must go through an official court of arbitration. It is a procedure fully dictated by the articles of association.
Said all that, I reckon in the light of your arguments, MY POST SHOULD BE A SECONDARY ALTERNATIVE.

12:34 Jan 26 

I'm not sure about the distinction you are trying to draw. An arbitral tribunal is always constituted by an equal number of arbitrators appointed by each side (normally one each), and the arbitrator with the casting vote is appointed by mutual agreement, or failing which by an independent third party (normally a judge).
The parties who submit to arbitration can be anyone: two shareholders from a company, a company and a shareholder, small traders, multinational corporations: anyone. The fact that the parties to arbitration are both from the same body (i.e. both company shareholders) does not mean that the arbitration is intra-company. It just means that the parties are closely related, but it doesn't change the nature of the arbitration.

11:48 Jan 26 

It has no legal standing. It is entirley internal and therefore a board and not a tribunal, as you yourself implicitly acknowledged when you mentioned the reference to the president of the local court. Anyway the term board is the standard translation for these and the term "arbitration board" has a lot of currency.

11:40 Jan 26 

that's an arbitration agreement, which is how any arbitral tribunal is constituted

11:39 Jan 26 

Hi Tam. I am very sure. I've translated so many of these. If the shareholders are in dispute, then each side chooses one member of the arbitration board and then these two agree on a third independent member. If they can't agree (o in difetto) they go to the "Presidente del Tribunale nella cui... " and ask this judge to appoint somebody. It is standard practice in all Italian SpAs. I might be lost in a court, but I know my way around shareholders' and the board meetings like the back of my hand.