Consent Awards and the Supervisory Role of Judiciary: Analytical Comparative Study

Abstract

This study examines the consent arbitral awards and the possiblity of applying to them the same conditions, rules and effects of ordinary arbitral awards. The study is divided into two main sections: Section one analyzes the legal framework of consent arbitral awards; their definition, purpose and the powers of arbitral tribunals to issue them as being originated from the parties’ consent. This is important in the light of some illegal practices of some disputants who may utilize such awards to cover such practices. The second section deals with the judicial review of consent awards either through annulment or enforcement proceedings under national arbitration laws and international conventions, and in particular the New York Convention of 1958 or the Washington Convention of 1965. This study concludes that the Consent Arbitral Awards play an active role in keeping the good relations between the disputants while having the same status and effects of ordinary arbitral awards. The study invites arbitral tribunals to play a more scrutinizing role of the settlement agreements before issuing the in-consent awards in order to avoid the misuse of the arbitral process as a cover of illegal practices.