Enforcement

Enforcement

This subtopic provides practical guidance on the recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards in the courts of England and Wales, and related matters.

This subtopic primarily provides guidance on the recognition and enforcement of arbitration awards under English and Welsh law and the Arbitration Act 1996 (AA 1996), which applies, with some exceptions, to arbitrations seated in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Guidance on related court procedure is limited to the courts of England and Wales (England and English are used as convenient shorthand). Practitioners may find some of the guidance relevant to arbitrations seated outside these jurisdictions.

For information on the recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards in other jurisdictions, see: International arbitration—enforcing international arbitral awards—overview.

To compare how arbitral awards are recognised and enforced in jurisdictions around the world, please see our International Comparator Tool.

An introduction to recognising and enforcing international arbitral awards

At the end of arbitration proceedings an arbitral tribunal will, typically, issue a final arbitral award on the merits of the parties’ dispute. In many cases, compliance with the tribunal’s

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Latest Arbitration News

Section 69 appeal—court clarifies scope of repudiation compensation (Olam Global Agri Pte Ltd v Holbud Ltd)

Arbitration analysis: This decision concerns Olam Global Agri Pte Ltd’s (Seller or Olam) section 69 appeal under the Arbitration Act 1996 (the ‘Act’) against a Grain and Feed Trade Association (GAFTA) Board of Appeal (BOA) award (BOA Award) in favour of Holbud Ltd (Buyer or ‘Holbud’) arising out of a GAFTA 49 FOB sale contract dated 19 November 2021 (the ‘Contract’). The appeal raised two issues: (a) whether an innocent party must prove its own ability to perform its contractual obligations in order to recover substantial damages where the counterparty has repudiated the contract by wrongly declaring force majeure; and (b) whether Clause 6 of GAFTA 49 (‘Clause 6’) permits a substitute vessel to be nominated at any time before the innocent party accepts that repudiation. In setting aside the BOA Award, the Commercial Court held that a wrongful force majeure notice does not, without more, relieve the Buyer of the need to prove it could have performed its own obligations to recover substantial damages. The court also found that Clause 6 does not permit substitution of a nominated vessel outside the clause’s strict timing requirements. Holbud’s claim for substantial damages therefore failed. The case underscores the corrective function of section 69 of the Act (‘Section 69’) and provides important guidance on the application of the compensatory principle in assessing damages following repudiatory breach. Written by Dr Ademola Bamgbose, solicitor advocate and senior associate at Hogan Lovells, London and Sofie Gowran, trainee solicitor at Hogan Lovells, London.

Republic of Rwanda commences PCA arbitration against UK

The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) reports that the Republic of Rwanda has commenced arbitral proceedings against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland by Notice of Arbitration dated 24 November 2025, pursuant to Article 22 of the Agreement for the Provision of an Asylum Partnership. The arbitration is conducted under the PCA Arbitration Rules 2012, with the PCA acting as Registry in accordance with Article 1(3) of the Rules.

CMAC announces conclusion of first ad hoc arbitration case under revised Chinese arbitration law

The China Maritime Arbitration Commission (CMAC) has announced that its Shanghai headquarters provided procedural services in China’s first ad hoc arbitration case concluded following the adoption of the revised arbitration law. The dispute involved two shipping companies registered in the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone and arose from charges under an international cargo transportation agreement. The parties appointed a sole arbitrator and designated CMAC’s Shanghai headquarters as the service provider, responsible for coordinating the hearing venue, arranging stenography and managing the case file. The hearing was held on 19 December 2025 in Shanghai, at which the parties reached a mediated settlement, subsequently formalised in a temporary arbitration award. The respondent complied with the award on the day it was issued.

ICCA publishes 2025 President's Report detailing arbitration activities

The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICCA) has published its 2025 President's Report detailing the organisation's arbitration and dispute resolution activities throughout 2025. The report highlights the ICCA-KIAC Conference held in Kigali, Rwanda in June 2025, which attracted over 300 delegates and facilitated the launch of ICCA's Database of Historical African Dispute Resolution spanning three centuries of arbitral proceedings involving African governments or interests. ICCA's publications programme updated 17 country reports in the ICCA Handbook Commercial Arbitration and reported on 120 court decisions and 19 arbitral awards through the ICCA Yearbook and Awards Series, bringing ICCA's total published materials to approximately 3,600 curated judicial decisions and over 650 awards. The organisation's diversity initiatives provided funding for 29 participants to attend the conference through the ICCA Inclusion Fund and supported eight fellows through the Johnny Veeder Fellowship Programme. The ICCA Judiciary Committee conducted New York Convention Roadshows in Baghdad, Cairo, Lima and Riyadh as part of its outreach activities. The 27th ICCA Congress is scheduled for Madrid from 12-15 April 2026.