Abstract:
Distinct from the substantive laws that guide a tribunal’s decision on the merits, the procedural laws of arbitration regulate the “internal” processes of the arbitration and the “external” relationship (supportive and supervisory) between the arbitration and the courts. This article discusses the meaning, scope and sources of procedural law and lex arbitri; the rights of parties to opt out and create their own procedural framework, and the limits on that freedom; and the process for determining the seat of arbitration (as the primary source of the lex arbitri) in the absence of agreement by the parties.