The Association of Consumer Support Organisations (ACSO) has responded to the Law Commission consultation on the Arbitration Act 1996.
Dan Bates, legal policy advisor at ACSO, said: "While we are pleased to see that the Law Commission has taken the opportunity to consider such matters, we also believe that the Act should be more accessible to the lay person.
"The benefit of arbitration is that it can be useful in multi-million pound commercial disputes, just as it can in small claims between Litigants in Person (LiPs) and insurers. However, the latter category of smaller value and higher-volume disputes may be discouraged from using arbitration due to the inaccessibility of the wording and technicalities of the Act. This is unfortunate as there is great potential in the use of arbitration and other ADR mechanisms to the benefit of all parties in litigation, and to assist the courts in reducing long backlogs and focussing more on the complex litigation with a wider social benefit. However, the act is complex and technical, and so represents a missed opportunity for the Law Commission to simplify and consolidate its language or make recommendations for supplementary consumer guidance."
Bates concludes that overall "ACSO considers that this is a positive action in refining an Act in which our members were already finding utility, particularly in its versatility."
ACSO members can read our full submission in the member's area of the website.