Do Australian proportionate liability regimes apply to arbitrations?

Following the introduction of proportionate liability regimes across Australia in the middle of last decade, a number of important questions arose and remained undecided. One of those was the question of whether the proportionate liability regimes would apply to disputes that were the subject of arbitration.

The Full Court of the Supreme Court of Tasmania in the case of Aquagenics Pty Ltd v Break O'Day Council [2010] TASFC 3 touched on the question without reaching a final view.

The WA Supreme Court has determined the question (at least in part) in the case of Curtin University of Technology v Woods Bagot Pty Ltd [2012] WASC 449. The parties were in arbitration under the Commercial Arbitration Act 1985 (WA) (CAA) as a consequence of a dispute that arose under a construction contract entered into between them.