This is one of the many books on the Arbitration Act 1996. Where it differs from the others is that it offers English, French, German and Spanish versions of the Act. The inspiration for this approach is explicitly acknowledged to be a book by Professor Sanders and van den Berg presenting English, French and German translations of the Netherlands Arbitration Act of 1986. The decision to add a Spanish translation of the 1996 Act was prompted by a realization of the ever-increasing importance of Spanish as a language of international trade.

It can be appreciated then that this is a book designed mainly for international users of the 1996 Act. England has always been one of the major centres of international arbitration, perhaps the major centre. The 1996 Act was a timely step towards maintaining that pre-eminence, which was under threat because England had been slow to realize that it was being left behind as other major (and not