The new English Arbitration Act 1996 (ed. 2025): what changes?
On 24 February 2025, the new edition of the English Arbitration Act 1996 has received a Royal Assent and is, thus, set to come into force by the date approved by the Secretary of State (the “Act”).
The new version of the Act marks a significant update to arbitration law in England and Wales. It is not a complete overhaul, but these changes are significant and designed to refine and modernize arbitration, providing more clarity, procedural efficiency, and fairness.
Below is an outline of some key changes introduced by the new.
- Clarifications on interim relief: the Act amends Section 44 and confirms that courts can grant interim relief (orders) in support of arbitration not only in relation to the parties of arbitration, but also in relation to “third” parties.
- Emergency arbitration: the Act amends Section 41 and strengthens the role of emergency arbitrators, granting them the authority to issue binding peremptory orders, which courts can further enforce.
- Power to dismiss “weak” claims on summary basis: the arbitrators now have the power to dismiss claims when a party has “no real prospect of succeeding”, similar to summary judgment in litigation. This is an opt-in provision, meaning parties can exclude it in their arbitration agreements. This is particularly important for those agreements which do not refer to the set of institutional rules with similar “summary” dismissal powers (such as HKIAC, LCIA, or SIAC). That is therefore relevant to consider for those who intend to negotiate the arbitration agreements referring to SCC or ICC rules with the seat in London (which is often the case).
- Statutory duty of disclosure for arbitrators: the Act stipulates an arbitrator’s duty to disclose any circumstances that could raise reasonable doubts about their impartiality, which basically only codifies a well-known duty to do the same under the common law set out in Halliburton v Chubb.
- Revised approach to jurisdictional challenges: the Act reboots the rules of jurisdictional challenges under Section 67. The courts will no longer allow, unless otherwise in the interest of justice: i) new arguments or evidence that were not put before the tribunal, and ii) re-examination of evidence already considered by the tribunal. As a result, the challenge procedures should become more streamlined.
- Governing law of the arbitration agreement: the Act inserts Section 6A, which introduces a new default rule that the governing law of an arbitration agreement will be the law of the arbitral seat, unless the parties agree otherwise. This resolves many of the complexities of the previous approach set forth by the Supreme Court’s decision of Enka v Chubb.
- 28-day period after correction of the award: The Act amends Section 70 to make clear that where the tribunal has made a material correction to an award or additional award the 28-day time limit for applications or appeals pursuant to Sections 67, 68 or 69, starts running from the date of the correction or additional award.
It is recommended to keep these changes into accounts, especially when drafting the arbitration agreements with the seat in London, UK.
Our team is ready to assist you on any questions related to the choice of appropriate arbitration institution, drafting the arbitration agreements and providing advice on the matter of ongoing or potential arbitration proceedings.
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