On 11 April 2024, Baker McKenzie launched the Arbitration Bill Progress Tracker, hosted on Global Arbitration News. The Tracker provides an overview of the Arbitration Bill, a guide to the key proposed changes and implications if the Bill is passed, and maps out the Bill’s progress, which will be updated regularly.
The UK government asked the Law Commission to review the Arbitration Act 1996 to determine whether any amendments are required in order to ensure that the Act remains fit for purpose and continues to promote the UK as a leading destination for commercial arbitration. The Arbitration Bill was introduced into Parliament on 21 November 2023.
Arbitration Bill halted (updated 13 June 2024)
One impact of the Prime Minister’s decision to call the general election for 4 July is that there will be no further progress in the Arbitration Bill until after the election.
While other pieces of legislation such as the Post Office Bill was rushed through its final stages in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords as part of the “washup” process – where certain, mainly uncontroversial bills in their ultimate stages are fast tracked through the legislative process before parliament is dissolved – the Arbitration Bill has been halted. This means that any reforms to the Arbitration Act 1996 will be decided by the next parliament and a new government following the election.
It is possible that the Bill may be further delayed by the incoming administration of the elected party as it may seek to push its manifesto commitments through parliament in its first month.
We will be keeping an eye on the situation and will continue to monitor the progress of a new Arbitration Bill in the next parliament, should it be re-introduced.