Arbitration Act reform awaits new Parliament's agenda

The Arbitration Bill 2024 reforming the Arbitration Act 1996 has not been included in the period of “wash-up” which allows certain bills to be enacted on an accelerated basis immediately after a General Election has been called. While the apolitical nature of the Arbitration Bill might have made it suitable for consideration, the Bill was still only at an early stage in the parliamentary process. The Ministry of Justice, the Bill’s sponsor, had also identified additional areas which required further consideration, notably the application of the Bill to investor state disputes and tackling corruption. The Arbitration Bill is not the only bill that has been affected. In particular, the Litigation Funding Agreements (Enforceability) Bill (please see our blog post here), is another proposed piece of legislation that was not included in the wash-up.

Among other matters, the Arbitration Bill had proposed the creation of a default rule providing that the arbitration agreement would be governed by the law of the seat of arbitration absent any agreement between the parties, clarifying the complex legal position set out by the Supreme Court in Enka v Chubb. The Arbitration Bill also sought to codify the arbitrators' duty of disclosure (as decided by the Supreme Court in Haliburton v Chubb) and to introduce a power of summary disposal.

Whether similar legislation will be introduced in the next Parliament will be a decision for the new government which will be formed following the general election to take place on 4 July 2024.

With thanks to Wajih Jaroudi for his assistance in preparing this blog post.