THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ARBITRATION VALUES AND ARBITRATION LAW

The purpose of this chapter is to identify the legal issues that commonly arise in arbitration. Building on the values discussed in Chapter 1, the discussion provides essential background for the chapters that follow and the proposed revisions of the Federal Arbitration Act.

The values and policies discussed in Chapter 1 are common to all arbitration systems. Their emphasis and priority, however, may vary from system to system and context to context. Thus, the primary objective in international arbitration may be to select a neutral forum and obtain reliable enforcement of arbitration agreements and awards while the primary objectives in, say, textile industry arbitration might be to obtain the quick, informal, and inexpensive resolution of factual and legal disputes that arise in continuing relationships.

Intertwined with these values are the legal issues that are common to most arbitration systems. The precise issue and its solution may depend upon the priority given by applicable arbitration law to the values and objectives of arbitration. For example, the extent to which courts should enforce arbitration agreements and awards or intervene in disputes arising after the commencement of arbitration but before the award will turn on how the tension between private autonomy and government control is resolved. This, in turn, may depend on whether commercial or consumer parties are involved (there may be special rules for consumer arbitration) or the nature of the claim subject to arbitration (some statutory claims may not be arbitrable).