Abstract:
The form of arbitration agreement is important because it effects the power of arbitral tribunal and the enforcement of the arbitral award. Therefore, parties must abide by the requirement on form, Generally, the laws require that an arbitration agreement must be in writing in order to be evidence of the parties 'consent to settle their disputes by arbitration and to remind the parties that the dispute is beyond the court jurisdiction. This thesis aims at studying the form of arbitration agreement under Article 7 of UNCTTRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration 1985. The model law requires the arbitration agreement be in writing. An arbitration agreement is in writing if it is contained in a document signed by both parties or in an exchange of letters, telex, telegrams or other means of telecommunication, which provide a record of the agreement or in an exchange of claim and defence statements in which the existence of an agreement is alleged by one party but not denied by the other. Moreover, the reference in a contract to a document that contains the arbitration clause so as to make that document part of the contract constitutes written arbitration agreement as well. This study reveals that the form of arbitration agreement under Article 7 does not fully Comply with the practices of international trade because, apart from the documents defined in Article 7, there exists other document, both paper and electronic forms, that could also be an evidence of the Agreement. To be inconsistent with the law makes arbitral tribunal lack of power in heling disputes and the awards unable to be enforced. I propose that Article 7 should be revised to allow more flexibility by Including any documents, both paper and electronic form, to be the evidence of the agreement so that the model law shall be more compatible with current patterns of international trade.