ARBITRATION

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ARBITRATION

ARBITRATION, practice. A reference and submission of a matter in dispute concerning property, or of a personal wrong, to the decision of one or morepersons as arbitrators. 2. They are voluntary or compulsory. The voluntary are, 1. Those madeby mutual consent, in which the parties select arbitrators, and bindthemselves by bond abide by their decision; these are made without any ruleof court. 3 Bl. Com. 16. 3.-2. Those which are made in a cause depending in court, by a ruleof court, before trial; these are arbitrators at common law, and the awardis enforced by attachment. Kyd on Awards, 21. 4.-3. Those which are made by virtue of the statute, 9 & l0 Will.III., c. 15, by which it is agreed to refer a matter in dispute not then incourt, to arbitrators, and agree that the submission be made a rule ofcourt, which is enforced as if it had been made a rule of court; Kyd on Aw.22; there are two other voluntary arbitrations which are peculiar toPennsylvania. 5.-4. The first of these is the arbitration under the act of June 16,1836, which provides that the parties to, any suit may consent to a rule ofcourt for referring all matters of fact in controversy to referees,reserving all matters of law for the decision of the court, and the reportof the referees shall have the effect of a special verdict, which is to beproceeded upon by the court as a special verdict, and either party may havea writ of error to the judgment entered thereupon 6.-5. Those by virtue of the act of 1806, which authorizes "anyperson or persons desirous of settling any dispute or controversy, bythemselves, their agents or attorneys, to enter into an agreement inwriting, or refer such dispute or controversy to certain persons to be bythem mutually chosen; and it shall be the duty of the referees to make outan award and deliver it to the party in whose favor it shall be made,together with the written agreement entered into by the parties; and itshall be the duty of the prothonotary, on the affidavit of a subscribingwitness to the agreement, that it was duly executed by the parties, to filethe same in his office; and on the agreement being so filed as aforesaid,he shall enter the award on record, which shall be as available in law as anaward made under a reference issued by the court, or entered on the docketby the parties." 7. Compulsory arbitrations are perhaps confined to Pennsylvania. Eitherparty in a civil suit or action,, or his attorney, may enter at theprothonotary's office a rule of reference, wherein be shall declare hisdetermination to have arbitrators chosen, on a day certain to be mentionedtherein, not exceeding thirty days, for the trial of all matters in variancein the suit between the parties. A copy of this rule is served on theopposite party. On the day. appointed they meet at the prothonotary's, andendeavor to agree upon arbitrators; if they cannot, the prothonotary makesout a list on which are inscribed the names of a number of citizens, and theparties alternately strike each one of them from the list, beginning withthe plaintiff, until there are but the number agreed upon or fixed by theprothonotary left, who are to be the arbitrators; a time of meeting is thenagreed upon or appointed by the prothonotary, when the parties cannotagree, at which time the arbitrators, after being sworn or affirm andequitably to try all matters in variance submitted to them, proceed to bearand decide the case; their award is filed in the office of the prothonotary,and has the effect of a judgment, subject, however, to appeal, which may beentered at any time within twenty days after the filing of such award. Actof 16th June, 1836, Pamphl. p. 715. 8. This is somewhat similar to the arbitrations of the Romans; therethe praetor selected from a list Of citizens made for the purpose, one ormore persons, who were authorized to decide all suits submitted to them, andwhich had been brought before him; the authority which the proctor gave themconferred on them a public character and their judgments were without appealToull. Dr. Civ. Fr. liv. 3, t. 3, ch. 4, n. 820. See generally, Kyd onAwards; Caldwel on Arbitrations; Bac. Ab. h.t.; 1 Salk. R. 69, 70-75; 2Saund. R. 133, n 7; 2 Sell. Pr. 241; Doct. Pl. 96; 3 Vin. Ab. 40; 3 Bouv.Inst. n. 2482.

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