Mittal v Westbridge

Not all disputes can be resolved through arbitration. Although it has been said that “[t]he term ‘arbitrability’ is easy to define”,1 its boundaries remain unclear, since “the scope and extent of the concept of arbitrability has been left undefined”.2 Disputes may not be arbitrable for reasons of public policy, but different jurisdictions have different public policies,3 and an international arbitration can engage many in the course of its life. There is no uniformity regarding what disputes should be considered “non-arbitrable”. This can be problematic, for example, where the arbitrability of a particular dispute is not the same under the law governing the arbitration agreement and the law of the seat.