Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Section 72(1) AA 1996 post-award jurisdiction challenges: English High Court (obiter) indicates non-participants may seek declarations/injunctions; no s70(3) 28‑day limit (ADC v AASTAR)

Published on: 16 October 2025

Published by a LexisNexis Arbitration expert

Legal News

Article summary

Following a hearing of ADC’s bid to extend time under AA 1996, s 80(5) and CPR 62.9, the court issued this judgment. Notably, it offers a thorough—albeit obiter—analysis of whether a non-participant may invoke s 72(1), and in particular if such an application can be made after an award. The judge held that s 72(1) is not confined to pre-award challenges and so is not caught by the s 70(3) deadline. Authored by Mark Wassouf, barrister, 3 Verulam Buildings. African Distribution Company S.a.R.L v AASTAR Trading Pte Ltd [2025] EWHC 2428 (Comm).

What are the practical implications of this case?

It is now settled that those who did not take part in the arbitration can rely on s 72(1) to attack an award after it is issued, as well as beforehand. The consequence is that a non-participant preserves a route to contest jurisdiction without being bound by the standard 28-day limit. That is particularly valuable where, as frequently occurs, the non-participant only learns of the arbitration or the award at a very late stage...

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