Interest

Interest on the sum awarded

Pirtek (UK) Ltd v Deanswood Ltd , 19 February 2005, an unreported decision of Aikens J, raised the important question of whether the successful party to an arbitration, who failed to claim interest on the sum awarded and who obtained an award net of interest, could thereafter apply to the arbitrator for an additional award of interest. Aikens J held that the slip rule in s57 of the 1996 Act did not permit such an application, and in the present case the applicant faced the further problem that even if such application was permitted in principle it was on the facts out of time.The point to be derived from the case is that a claim for interest must be made before the final award is made: if no such claim is made, the arbitrator cannot revisit the matter under the slip rule and the court cannot itself award interest in any order enforcing the award.