International Arbitration Act, 2017 (Act No. 15 of 2017)SchedulesSchedule 1 : Uncitral Model Law on International Commercial ArbitrationChapter II : Arbitration agreement |
Article 7. Definition and form of arbitration agreement
| (1) | ‘‘Arbitration agreement’’ is an agreement by the parties to submit to arbitration all or certain disputes which have arisen or which may arise between them in respect of a defined legal relationship, whether contractual or not. An arbitration agreement may be in the form of an arbitration clause in a contract or in the form of a separate agreement. |
| (2) | The arbitration agreement shall be in writing. |
| (3) | An arbitration agreement is in writing if its content is recorded in any form, whether or not the arbitration agreement or contract has been concluded orally, by conduct, or by other means. |
| (4) | The requirement that an arbitration agreement be in writing is met by an electronic communication if the information contained therein is accessible so as to be useable for subsequent reference. |
| (5) | For purposes of paragraph (4), ‘‘electronic communication’’ means any communication that the parties make by means of data messages, and ‘‘data message’’ means information generated, sent, received or stored by electronic, magnetic, optical or similar means, including, but not limited to, electronic data interchange (EDI), electronic mail, telegram, telex or telecopy. |
| (6) | Furthermore, an arbitration agreement is in writing if it is contained in an exchange of statements of claim and defence in which the existence of an agreement is alleged by one party and not denied by the other. |
| (7) | The reference in a contract to any document containing an arbitration clause constitutes an arbitration agreement in writing, provided that the reference is such as to make that clause part of the contract. |
Article 8. Arbitration agreement and substantive claim before court
| (1) | A court before which an action is brought in a matter which is the subject of an arbitration agreement shall, if a party so requests not later than when submitting his or her first statement on the substance of the dispute, stay those proceedings and refer the parties to arbitration unless it finds that the agreement is null and void, inoperative or incapable of being performed. |
| (2) | Where an action referred to in paragraph (1) of this article has been brought, arbitral proceedings may nevertheless be commenced or continued, and an award may be made, while the issue is pending before the court. |
Article 9. Arbitration agreement and interim measures by court
| (1) | It is not incompatible with an arbitration agreement for a party to request, before or during arbitral proceedings, from a court an interim measure of protection and for a court to grant such measure. |
| (2) | The court has the powers contained in article 17J to grant interim measures in relation to arbitration proceedings. |