STOP PRESS: This Practice Note has been updated in light of the new Arbitration Act 2025 and contains reference to amended provisions in the Arbitration Act 1996. For further information on when the new act comes into force see Practice Note:  When will the Arbitration Act 2025 come into force?

This Practice Note provides an introduction to arbitration and its key features, with a particular focus on arbitration under the law of England and Wales, including the Arbitration Act 1996 (AA 1996), as amended by the Arbitration Act 2025 (AA 2025), which received Royal Assent on 24 February 2025 and will be in force on the day of the statutory instrument.

Arbitration is a form of final and binding dispute resolution presided over by an appointed arbitral tribunal (one or three arbitrators, typically) acting in a quasi-judicial manner. Arbitration is, generally speaking, founded on party agreement (the arbitration agreement), and regulated and enforced by national law and national courts. In choosing arbitration, parties opt for a private dispute resolution procedure instead