Parties have the freedom to structure an arbitration contract to meet their needs. If parties want the process governed by a specific body of law, they should include the preference either in their arbitration clause or in the underlying contract. But sometimes parties aren’t as clear as one would like. Arbitrators might find themselves confronted by an entire contract including an arbitration clause silent about applying law.
Sometimes parties provide an arbitrator with what the arbitrator believes is an incomplete statement of applicable law. Perhaps an arbitrator concludes that after having read the submissions of the parties, the presentations are completely wrong. Or suppose an arbitrator discovers that the parties have failed to address an issue that the arbitrator believes could affect the outcome of the matter.
