On 1 August 2025, the Arbitration Act 2025 came into force, embedded as several 'A'-suffixed sections in the principal Arbitration Act 1996.
While the 1996 Act has not been subjected to a process of root and branch reform, a number of the new sections may have a significant impact on the practice of domestic and international arbitration in England & Wales, including those arbitrations being conducted under institutional terms.
This session will give a background to the important changes made in 2025 to the 1996 Act, including: the law applicable to the arbitration agreement, the duty of disclosure, the power of summary dismissal and emergency arbitrators.
Charles Debattista: Charles practises as a barrister and as an arbitrator in high-value international commercial disputes. Apart from representing parties in disputes at all levels of the English Courts and arbitral tribunals, he is also regularly engaged to provide expert opinions on English law abroad on areas of his expertise. Charles attracts instructions and appointments in all aspects of dry shipping disputes, international sales of commodities and other goods, letters of credit and bank guarantees, energy, ship management, and super-yacht disputes and more general international commercial contract matters.
Robert Morgan: Robert was called to the Bar of England & Wales at Gray’s Inn in 1980 and Queensland, Australia, in 1999. He is a former Legal Adviser to CIArb in London, a past Chair of the CIArb East Asia Branch and a past Vice-President of CIArb Australia, has taught dispute resolution at undergraduate and postgraduate levels at universities in Hong Kong and Australia, and was involved in arbitration law reform advisory committee processes in Hong Kong. He is currently Consulting and Technical Editor of the Hong Kong-based journal Asian Dispute Review and a Committee member of the Thames Valley Branch of the CIArb.
Ishfaq Ahmed: Ishfaq has been practising at the Commercial and Admiralty Bar since October 2000, representing and advising in a wide range of commercial and shipping litigation and arbitration. Ishfaq is a Member of the Commercial Bar Association, the London Shipping Law Centre, the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and Lincoln’s Inn.
Cost: There is no charge for this event. Guests and non-members are most welcome, but registration must be made on line via the CIArb branch website.
Queries can be directed to James Richardson of Thames Valley branch CIArb on
07577 484 035 or james@jrichardsonconsulting.co.uk
Location: Holiday Inn - High Wycombe
Date: 25 Feb 2026
Interested in becoming a member? Take a look at our Routes to Membership.
Some members of our branch have registered details of their specialities. To find a specialist in a given field of practice; utilise to our directory.
For more information about joining the committee, see our Committee Page.
The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators website can be found at ciarb.org and links to other arbitration and litigation sites are available there.
