Arbitration Act 2010

• Enactment Date: 08 March 2010
• Act Number: 1

• Full Act
• Act by Section
• Act As Enacted
• Amendments
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Number 1 of 2010

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ARBITRATION ACT 2010

REVISED

Updated to 29 November 2022

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This Revised Act is an administrative consolidation of the Arbitration Act 2010. It is prepared by the Law Reform Commission in accordance with its function under the Law Reform Commission Act 1975 (3/1975) to keep the law under review and to undertake revision and consolidation of statute law.

All Acts up to and including the Consumer Rights Act 2022 (37/2022), enacted 29 November 2022, and all statutory instruments up to and including the Consumer Rights Act 2022 (Commencement) Order 2022 (S.I. No. 596 of 2022), made 28 November 2022, were considered in the preparation of this Revised Act.

Disclaimer: While every care has been taken in the preparation of this Revised Act, the Law Reform Commission can assume no responsibility for and give no guarantees, undertakings or warranties concerning the accuracy, completeness or up to date nature of the information provided and does not accept any liability whatsoever arising from any errors or omissions. Please notify any errors, omissions and comments by email to

revisedacts@lawreform.ie.

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Number 1 of 2010

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ARBITRATION ACT 2010

REVISED

Updated to 29 November 2022

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Introduction

This Revised Act presents the text of the Act as it has been amended since enactment, and preserves the format in which it was passed.

Related legislation

This Act is not collectively cited with any other Act.

Annotations

This Revised Act is annotated and includes textual and non-textual amendments, statutory instruments made pursuant to the Act and previous affecting provisions.

An explanation of how to read annotations is available at

www.lawreform.ie/annotations.

Material not updated in this revision

Where other legislation is amended by this Act, those amendments may have been superseded by other amendments in other legislation, or the amended legislation may have been repealed or revoked. This information is not represented in this revision but will be reflected in a revision of the amended legislation if one is available.

Where legislation or a fragment of legislation is referred to in annotations, changes to this legislation or fragment may not be reflected in this revision but will be reflected in a revision of the legislation referred to if one is available.

A list of legislative changes to any Act, and to statutory instruments from 1972, may be found linked from the page of the Act or statutory instrument at

www.irishstatutebook.ie.

Acts which affect or previously affected this revision

• Consumer Rights Act 2022 (37/2022)

• Companies Act 2014 (38/2014)

All Acts up to and including Consumer Rights Act 2022 (37/2022), enacted 29 November 2022, were considered in the preparation of this revision.

Statutory instruments which affect or previously affected this revision

• European Union (Insurance and Reinsurance) Regulations 2015 (S.I. No. 485 of 2015)

• Finance (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order 2011 (S.I. No. 418 of 2011)

All statutory instruments up to and including Consumer Rights Act 2022 (Commencement) Order 2022 (S.I. No. 596 of 2022), made 28 November 2022, were considered in the preparation of this revision.

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Number 1 of 2010

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ARBITRATION ACT 2010

REVISED

Updated to 29 November 2022

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Acts Referred to

Arbitration Act 1954	1954, No. 26
Arbitration Acts 1954 to 1998
Copyright and Related Rights Act 2000	2000, No. 28
Industrial Relations Act 1946	1946, No. 26
Landlord and Tenant (Ground Rents) Act 1967	1967, No. 3
Legal Practitioners (Ireland) Act 1876	39 & 40 Vict., c. 44
Merchant Shipping Act 1894	57 & 58 Vict., c. 60
Patents Act 1992	1992, No. 1
Property Values (Arbitration and Appeals) Act 1960	1960, No. 45
Statute of Limitations 1957	1957, No. 6

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Number 1 of 2010

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ARBITRATION ACT 2010

REVISED

Updated to 29 November 2022

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AN ACT TO FURTHER AND BETTER FACILITATE RESOLUTION OF DISPUTES BY ARBITRATION; TO GIVE THE FORCE OF LAW TO THE UNCITRAL MODEL LAW ON INTERNATIONAL COMMERCIAL ARBITRATION (AS AMENDED BY THE UNITED NATIONS COMMISSION ON INTERNATIONAL TRADE LAW ON 7 JULY 2006) IN RESPECT OF BOTH INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION AND OTHER ARBITRATION; TO GIVE THE FORCE OF LAW TO THE PROTOCOL ON ARBITRATION CLAUSES OPENED AT GENEVA ON THE 24TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER 1923, THE CONVENTION ON THE EXECUTION OF FOREIGN ARBITRAL AWARDS DONE AT GENEVA ON THE 26TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER 1927, THE CONVENTION ON THE RECOGNITION AND ENFORCEMENT OF FOREIGN ARBITRAL AWARDS DONE AT NEW YORK ON 10 JUNE 1958 AND TO THE CONVENTION ON THE SETTLEMENT OF INVESTMENT DISPUTES BETWEEN STATES AND NATIONALS OF OTHER STATES OPENED FOR SIGNATURE IN WASHINGTON ON 18 MARCH 1965; TO REPEAL THE ARBITRATION ACTS 1954 TO 1998; AND TO PROVIDE FOR RELATED MATTERS.

[8th March, 2010]

BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:

PART 1

Preliminary and General

1.

Short title and commencement.

1.— (1) This Act may be cited as the Arbitration Act 2010.

(2) This Act shall come into operation 3 months after its passing.

2.

Interpretation.

2.— (1) In this Act:

“arbitration” means—

(a) an international commercial arbitration, or

(b) an arbitration which is not an international commercial arbitration;

“arbitration agreement” shall be construed in accordance with Option 1 of Article 7;

“award” includes a partial award;

“consumer” means a natural person, whether in the State or not, who is acting for purposes outside the person’s trade, business or profession;

“Geneva Convention” means the Convention on the Execution of Foreign Arbitral Awards done at Geneva on the 26th day of September, 1927, the text of which is set out in Schedule 4;

“Geneva Protocol” means the Protocol on Arbitration Clauses opened at Geneva on the 24th day of September, 1923, the text of which is set out in Schedule 5 ;

“Minister” means the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform;

“Model Law” means the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration (as adopted by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law on 21 June 1985, with amendments as adopted by that Commission at its thirty-ninth session on 7 July 2006), the text of which is set out in Schedule 1;

“New York Convention” means the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, done at New York on 10 June 1958, the text of which is set out in Schedule 2;

“State authority” means—

(a) a Minister of the Government,

(b) the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland,

(c) the Irish Land Commission,

(d) the Revenue Commissioners,

(e) a body established by or under any enactment, andfinanced wholly or partly, whether directly or indirectly, by moneys provided, or loans made or guaranteed, by a Minister of the Government or the issue of shares held by or on behalf of any Minister of the Government;

“Washington Convention” means the Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States opened for signature in Washington on 18 March 1965, the text of which is set out in Schedule 3.

(2) In this Act—

(a) a word or expression that is used in this Act and that is also used in the Model Law has, unless the context otherwise requires, the same meaning in this Act as it has in the Model Law, and

(b) a reference to an Article is a reference to an Article of the Model Law.

3.

Application of Act.

3.— (1) This Act shall not apply to an arbitration under an arbitration agreement concerning an arbitration which has commenced before the operative date but shall apply to an arbitration commenced on or after the operative date.

(2) In this section, “operative date” means the date on which this Act comes into operation pursuant to section 1.

4.

Repeals and effect of repeals.

4.— (1) Subject to subsection (2), the Arbitration Acts 1954 to 1998 are repealed.

(2) Subject to section 3, the repeal of the Acts referred to in subsection (1) shall not prejudice or affect any proceedings, whether or not pending at the time of the repeal, in respect of any right, privilege, obligation or liability and any proceedings taken under those Acts in respect of any such right, privilege, obligation or liability acquired, accrued or incurred under the Acts may be instituted, continued or enforced as if the Acts concerned had not been repealed.

(3) In this section “proceedings” includes arbitral proceedings and civil or criminal proceedings.

5.

Expenses.

5.— The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

PART 2

Arbitration

6.

Adoption of Model Law.

6.— Subject to this Act, the Model Law shall have the force of law in the State and shall apply to arbitrations under arbitration agreements concerning—

(a) international commercial arbitrations, or

(b) arbitrations which are not international commercial arbitrations.

7.

Commencement of arbitral proceedings.

7.— (1) For the purposes of this Act and for the purposes of section 496 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 (as amended by section 29) arbitral proceedings shall be deemed to be commenced on—

(a) the date on which the parties to an arbitration agreement so provide as being the commencement date for the purposes of the commencement of arbitral proceedings under the agreement, or

(b) where no provision has been made by the parties as to commencement of proceedings as referred to in paragraph (a), the date on which a...