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Switzerland: Federal Tribunal sets aside CAS award for fraud and forgery; relies on criminal findings, confirms 90‑day clock and narrow scope of revision/nullity under Article 190a PILA

Published on: 23 December 2025

Published by a LexisNexis Arbitration expert

Legal News

Article summary

What are the practical implications of this case?

This ruling carries significant practical weight for arbitration specialists, particularly in international arbitrations seated in Switzerland.

To begin with, it reaffirms that reopening arbitral awards on the basis of taint by criminal wrongdoing remains a rarity under Swiss law. Even though Article 190a PILA now expressly codifies the ground for revision, the Swiss Federal Tribunal applies it sparingly. As such, this matter is among the exceptional cases where a Swiss-seated award was annulled because criminal offences were found to have directly shaped the result.
Moreover, the judgment underscores the pivotal evidential function of criminal proceedings. The Federal Tribunal drew heavily on the final determinations of the Swiss criminal courts, which definitively established document forgery and procedural fraud. For practitioners, this indicates that a petition under Article 190a(1)(b) PILA will typically prevail only where criminal authorities have proven the offence and its causal bearing on the award, or where equivalent proof exists.
Finally, the case exposes the inherent constraints of arbitration when facing sophisticated fraud, as arbitral tribunals lack imperium and coercive investigative powers...

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