Arbitrator Appointment and Challenge in Saudi Arabia

You sent the request for arbitration and named your arbitrator. Weeks passed and the other party stayed silent. Then, when it appointed its arbitrator, you discovered he was its former partner in a project. Arbitration is not stopped by silence, and an arbitrator facing serious doubts about his impartiality is not accepted.

The direct answer: if the other party does not appoint its arbitrator within 15 days of receiving your request, the competent court appoints one at your request (Article 15 of the Arbitration Law). If you doubt an arbitrator's impartiality, you can ask in writing for his removal (a challenge) before the tribunal within only 5 days of learning the reason, and then before the court within 30 days if your challenge is rejected (Article 17). The deadlines are very short, and staying silent may be treated as a waiver.

Who can be an arbitrator in Saudi Arabia?

An arbitrator must have full legal capacity, good conduct and behaviour, and at least a university degree in Sharia or legal sciences. If there are several arbitrators, it is enough that the chair meets this condition (Article 14). The tribunal must have an odd number of members, or the arbitration is void (Article 13).

What if the other party does not appoint an arbitrator?

• If the tribunal is a sole arbitrator and the parties do not agree on him, the competent court chooses him.
• If the tribunal is three arbitrators, each party chooses one and the two arbitrators agree on the third. If a party does not appoint its arbitrator within 15 days of receiving a request to do so, or the two arbitrators do not agree on the third within 15 days of the later appointment, the court makes the choice at the request of the party who wants to proceed, within 15 days of the request (Article 15 of the Arbitration Law).

In its choice, the court takes into account the conditions the parties agreed and what the law requires. It issues its decision within 30 days of the request, and its appointment decision cannot be appealed on its own (Article 15). The competent court here is the Court of Appeal that would originally hear the dispute (Article 8 of the Law and Article 2 of the Implementing Regulations). The applicant attaches a copy of the request for arbitration and the arbitration agreement (Article 4 of the Regulations).

What must an arbitrator disclose?

An arbitrator must have no interest in the dispute. From his appointment and throughout the proceedings, he must declare in writing all circumstances that may raise justified doubts about his impartiality and independence. He may not hear the case in situations where a judge would be barred from hearing it (Article 16).

When can an arbitrator be challenged?

An arbitrator may be challenged only if circumstances raise serious doubts about his impartiality or independence, or if he does not have qualifications the parties agreed on. A party may not challenge an arbitrator it appointed itself except for reasons that appeared after the appointment (Article 16).

How do you challenge an arbitrator, and what is the deadline?

Unless the parties agreed on another procedure, the challenge is filed in writing with the tribunal within five days of learning of the tribunal's formation or of the circumstances justifying the challenge. If the arbitrator does not step down and the other party does not agree within five days, the tribunal decides within 15 days. If the challenge is rejected, the challenging party may go to the competent court within 30 days, and the court's judgment cannot be appealed. Filing a challenge before the tribunal suspends the arbitration proceedings (Article 17).

A challenge is not accepted from a party who has already challenged the same arbitrator in the same arbitration for the same reasons, and it is not accepted after the close of pleadings (Article 17 of the Law and Article 5 of the Regulations). If the challenge succeeds, everything done in the proceedings, including the award, is treated as if it never happened (Article 17). An arbitrator may step down without giving reasons, and stepping down is not an admission that the claims against him are true (Article 5 of the Regulations).

In an arbitration over a SAR 5 million construction contract, the claimant learns on 10 May that the arbitrator appointed by the other side was a consultant to the other side's company a year ago and did not disclose it.

He files a written challenge with the tribunal on 13 May, attaching the earlier consultancy contract. The arbitrator does not step down and the other side does not agree, so the tribunal rejects the challenge two weeks later.

The claimant applies to the competent court within the 30 days, and its ruling on the challenge is final. If he had waited for the award and then filed an annulment case, his position would have been much weaker.

What if an arbitrator stops working or delays the case?

If an arbitrator cannot perform his task, or stops performing it in a way that causes unjustified delay, and he does not step down and the parties do not agree to remove him, the court may remove him at either party's request by a decision that cannot be appealed. Otherwise, an arbitrator not appointed by the court can be removed only by agreement of both parties (Article 18). If an arbitrator's task ends for any reason, a replacement is appointed in the same way he was chosen (Article 19), and the deadline for the award is extended by 30 days (Article 40).

If you notice a breach in the formation of the tribunal and continue with the proceedings without objecting within 30 days of learning of it, or within the agreed period, you are treated as having waived your right to object to breaches of rules that the parties are allowed to agree otherwise on (Article 7).

This is general information based on the official Arabic texts of Saudi laws, which prevail over any translation. It is not legal advice for your specific case.

Practical solutions for both sides

If you are asking for an appointment or a challenge:

• If the other party stays silent for 15 days after your request, ask the court to make the appointment.
• Ask the proposed arbitrator for a written disclosure before he accepts.
• File the challenge within five days of learning the reason; the deadline is very short.
• Attach evidence of the reason, not just an impression.

If you are the arbitrator or the party who appointed him:

• Disclose any previous relationship, however small it seems.
• Early disclosure protects the award from annulment later.
• If you cannot continue, step down instead of causing delay.

Impartiality is the basis of a valid award. If you have doubts about an arbitrator, or the other party is delaying the appointment, send us the details and the dates you learned of them on WhatsApp, and we will calculate the deadlines with you before they pass.