The Arbitration and Mediation Services (Equality) Bill 2010-11 had its first reading in the House of Lords on 7 June 2011. This private members' Bill proposes amendments to various statutes, including the Arbitration Act 1996 (AA 1996) and the Equality Act 2010 (EA 2010), regarding the application of equality legislation to arbitration and mediation services, in particular, in the context of family law matters, domestic abuse and criminal proceedings.

The Bill proposes that the AA 1996 be amended to provide that any arbitration agreement or process must not be unequal in terms of the weight of evidence of a man or a woman, the division of estates between male and female children on intestacy, and property rights. A consequential amendment to section 68 is proposed, to allow an award to be challenged for failure to comply with this proposed new provision. It is also proposed that the AA 1996 be amended to provide that any matter which falls within the jurisdiction of the criminal or family courts cannot be the subject of arbitration proceedings.

The Bill proposes that the EA 2010 be amended to provide that a person must not do anything that constitutes discrimination, harassment or victimisation on the grounds of sex when providing arbitration services.

This is the first time amendments to the AA 1996 have been put forward, and it is worth noting that the proposals relating to the jurisdiction of the family and criminal courts are likely to give rise to debate about the proper scope of arbitrable disputes.

We will continue to report on further developments.