Order: Declares lack of jurisdiction, sends dividend prescription case to arbitration – Pollo Rey

On October 15, 2019, the Eleventh Civil Court of First Instance in Guatemala issued its ruling in the dividend prescription lawsuit filed by Pollo Rey, S.A. against Lisa, S.A. In the dispositive section, the court declared with merit the preliminary objection of incompetence raised by Lisa, S.A., based on the arbitration clause in Pollo Rey’s corporate charter. Consequently, the judge abstained from addressing the other objections and did not examine the merits of the case.

The court ordered that the dispute be resolved by arbitration, as the company’s founding documents stipulate that any controversy between the corporation and its shareholders — including those regarding dividend rights or their prescription — must be handled by an arbitral tribunal. No costs were imposed in this incident, given the nature of the issues debated. This effectively suspended the civil court proceedings and redirected the matter to arbitration.