Section 55 Arbitration and Mediation Act
Section 55 Arbitration and Mediation Act 2023 is about Application for setting aside an arbitral award. It is under Part I (Arbitration) of the Act.
(1) Recourse to a court against an arbitral award may be made only by an application for setting aside in accordance with subsections (3) and (4).
(2) An application for setting aside an arbitral award shall not be made on the ground of an error on the face of the award, or any other ground except those expressly stated in subsection (3).
(3) The Court may set aside an arbitral award, where-
(a) the party who makes the application furnishes proof that-
(i) a party to the arbitration agreement was under some legal incapacity,
(ii) the arbitration agreement is not valid under the law to which the parties have subjected it, or failing such indication, under the laws of Nigeria,
(iii) the party who makes the application was not given proper notice of the appointment of an arbitrator or of the arbitral proceedings or was otherwise not able to present its case,
(iv) the award deals with a dispute not contemplated by or does not fall within the terms of the submission to arbitration,
(v) the award contains decisions on matters which are beyond the scope of the submission to arbitration, provided that, if the decisions on matters submitted to arbitration can be separated from those not submitted, only that part of the award which contains decisions on matters not submitted to arbitration may be set aside,
(vi) the composition of the arbitral tribunal, or the arbitral procedure, was not in accordance with the agreement of the parties, unless the agreement was in conflict with a provision of this Act from which
the parties cannot derogate, or
(vii) where there is no agreement between the parties under subparagraph (vi), that the composition of the arbitral tribunal or the arbitral procedure was not in accordance with this Act; or (b) the Court finds that the –
(i) subject matter of the dispute is otherwise not capable of settlement by
arbitration under the laws of Nigeria, or
(ii) award is against public policy of Nigeria.
(4) An application for setting aside shall not be made after three months have elapsed from the date on which the party making that application had received the award or, if a request had been made under section 49 of this Act, from the date on which that request had been disposed of by the arbitral tribunal.
(5) Where the Court is satisfied that one or more of the grounds set out in subsection (3) has been proved and that it has caused or will cause substantial injustice to the applicant, the court may-
(a) remit the award to the tribunal, in whole or in part, for reconsideration; or
(b) set the award aside in whole or in part.
(6) The Court, when asked to set aside an award, may, where appropriate and so requested by a party, suspend the setting aside proceedings for a period of time determined by it in order to give the arbitral tribunal an opportunity to resume the arbitral proceedings or to take any other action which in the opinion of the arbitral tribunal will eliminate the grounds for setting aside.
