Herbert Smith Freehills review the English High Court’s decision in the case of X v Y [2018] EWHC 741 (Comm), where the Court dismissed an application to set aside an arbitral award under s.68 of the English Act on the basis that the claimant should have first exhausted all remedies available to it by applying to the tribunal for correction or clarification of the award under s.57(3) of the Act. The Court found that a tribunal had power under Article 27.1 of the LCIA Rules 1998 to clarify ambiguity in the award, and that Article 27.1 did not, in any case, oust the tribunal’s equivalent power under s.57(3) of the Act.
The authors observe that the case is a useful reminder to unsuccessful parties to analyse quickly and thoroughly an award and to ensure that any available process under s.57 is exhausted before an application is made under s68. In particular, those who consider that the tribunal’s award is deficient for failing to deal with all issues put to it should assess whether such a complaint may be dealt with under s.57(3) as a failure to give (adequate) reasons.
