ARBITRATION

Having regard to the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights, where parties have voluntarily entered into an arbitration agreement they are to be treated as waiving their rights under Art 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the Convention). To be effective, the arbitration agreement has also to be agreed without constraint and not run counter to any important public interest.

The principle underlying the doctrine of constraint is essentially the same as the principle that the waiver must be voluntary, in the sense that the arbitration agreement must not be compulsory as being required by law. #

In both cases the principle is that the waiver must be voluntary in the sense that the parties have voluntarily entered into the arbitration agreement. Thus, if there is duress, undue influence or mistake which invalidates the arbitration agreement there will be no waiver of relevant rights under Art 6.