‘In arbitration, the parties are free to choose the law to determine the substantive issues in dispute (the substantive law). This freedom is recognised by section 46(1)(a) of the Arbitration Act 1996 (the 1996 act) which requires the arbitral tribunal to decide the issues in dispute in accordance with the law chosen by the parties or, under section 46(1)(b), ‘if the parties so agree, in accordance with such other considerations as are agreed by them or determined by the tribunal’. This latter provision allows the parties to choose a substantive law which may include religious law, such as sharia law or Jewish law. However, as illustrated by the recent decision of the English High Court in Djanogly v Djanogly [2025] EWHC 61 (Ch), the parties’ choice of substantive law may be restricted by any mandatory laws to which the parties and the arbitral tribunal must adhere.’
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Law Society's Gazette, 6th June 2025
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk