Thailand Law Library

by Thailand Lawyer

Chapter 3: Jurisdiction of Arbitral Tribunal

The arbitral tribunal shall be competent to rule on its own jurisdiction, including the existence or validity of the arbitration agreement, the validity of the appointment of the arbitral tribunal, and issues of dispute falling within the scope of its authority. For that purpose, an arbitration clause, which forms part of a contract, shall be treated as an agreement independent of the main contract. A decision by the arbitral tribunal that the contract is null and void shall not affect the validity of the arbitration clause.

The challenge as to the competence of the tribunal shall be raised no later than the date of submission of the statement of defense; the parties shall not be precluded from raising on the grounds that they appointed or participated in the appointment of the arbitrator. A plea that the arbitral tribunal is exceeding the scope of its authority shall be raised as soon as the matter occurs during the arbitral proceedings. Save where the arbitral tribunal considers that there are reasonable grounds to delay the challenge, the arbitral tribunal may allow the party to file a challenge after the fixed period of time.

The arbitral tribunal may rule on its jurisdiction either as a preliminary question or in an award on the merits. If the arbitral tribunal rules as a preliminary question that it has jurisdiction, either party may file a motion requesting the competent court to decide the matter within thirty days after receipt of the ruling on the preliminary issue, and during the time that the motion is pending, the arbitral tribunal may continue the arbitral proceedings and render an award.