Abstract

This article examines the grounds for vacatur of arbitration awards under the Federal Arbitration Act (the “FAA”). While Section 10(a) of the FAA enumerates only four narrow grounds for vacating arbitration awards-corruption or fraud, evident partiality, arbitrator misconduct, and arbitrators exceeding their powers-parties continue to invoke judicially created, “extratextual” doctrines to challenge awards. Two such doctrines recur with particular frequency: “manifest disregard of the law,” and the public policy exception. This article proceeds in three parts. First, it summarizes the FAA’s statutory scheme for vacatur and its application to domestic and international awards (Section II). Second, it traces the origins and modern treatment of the manifest disregard and public policy doctrines across the federal Circuits (Section III). And third, it provides practitioner-focused guidance on managing vacatur risk at the drafting, arbitral-process, and post-award enforcement stages (Section IV).

This paper will be part of the TDM Special Issue on "One Century of Arbitration in the United States: The Federal Arbitration Act at Home and Abroad". More information here www.transnational-dispute-management.com/news.asp?key=2077