The government has published regulations confirming that the long-awaited Arbitration Act 2025 will come into force on 1 August 2025.

Arbitration practitioners have been following the progress of the new legislation which arose from an extensive consultation carried out by the Law Commission and a detailed report published in September 2023. The recommendations of the Law Commission and the resulting legislation are intended to modernise the arbitration legislative framework and ensure the UK maintains its position as a centre for global dispute resolution.

There has been detailed commentary about the changes and significant updates include clarifying the law applicable to arbitration agreements, amending the framework for challenges to jurisdiction under section 67 of the Arbitration Act and introducing a provision for summary disposal of claims where a party has no real prospects of success. We have previously written about the changes here. 

Debate may continue about whether some of the other issues considered by the Law Commission, or indeed any other points (such as addressing the risk of corruption in arbitration), should have been included. However the new legislation is a welcome update to the arbitral framework in the UK in an increasingly competitive global market for dispute resolution and demonstrates the ability of the law to adapt to recent developments. 

The Arbitration Act 2025 (Commencement) Regulations 2025