Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Arbitration definition

What does Arbitration mean? Arbitration is a private process where parties resolve disputes by one or more arbitrators who issue a final, binding award instead of a court judgment. It is consensual, usually agreed by an arbitration clause, and the law of the seat governs the procedure (lex arbitri). In England and Wales and Northern Ireland, the Arbitration Act 1996 applies. Courts stay court proceedings in favour of arbitration, provide support, and enforce awards; challenges are limited to lack of jurisdiction (s.67), serious irregularity (s.68) and, unless excluded, appeal on a point of law (s.69). In Scotland, the Arbitration (Scotland) Act 2010 provides a similar...

Arbitration in England and Wales: party autonomy, seat, tribunal, separability, confidentiality, joinder, expedited procedures and award enforcement (Arbitration Act 1996, as amended by the Arbitration Act 2025)

Published by a LexisNexis Arbitration expert

Practice notes

This PrACTice Note

This Practice Note has been revised following the introduction of the Arbitration Act 2025 and now points to changes made to the Arbitration Act 1996. For more detail on commencement and transitional arrangements, see Practice Note: Arbitration Act 2025 commencement and transitional provisions. It offers an overview of arbitration and its principal characteristics, concentrating on practice under the Law of England and Wales, including the Arbitration Act 1996 (AA 1996), as modified by the Arbitration Act 2025 (AA 2025), which obtained Royal Assent on 24 February 2025 and took effect on 1 August 2025. Arbitration is a conclusive and binding method of resolving disputes, overseen by a constituted arbitral tribunal (usually one or three arbitrators) operating in a quasi-judicial way. As a rule, it rests on the parties' agreement (the arbitration agreement) and is supervised and enforced by national law and the national courts. By electing arbitration, parties select a private procedure for resolving disputes rather than pursuing litigation in court...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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