Arbitration Updated – Key Changes From The Arbitration Act 2025

Key Takeaways

Last week the UK's new Arbitration Act 2025 (the "Act") received Royal Assent. In this update, we summarise the background to the Act and the main changes emerging from it.

The following key changes emerge from the Act, which we summarise in this OnPoint:

• Change of the governing law applicable to an arbitration agreement;
• A new explicit power to dispose of actions on a summary basis;
• A new framework for jurisdiction challenges under Section 67 of the Arbitration Act 1996 (the "1996 Act");
• Granting of enforceable powers to emergency arbitrators; and
• Amendments to the rights and duties of arbitrators, including:
  • Codifying the duty of disclosure as to impartiality; and