The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) has just adopted amendments to the Model Law concerning arbitral awards in electronic form and electronic notices of arbitration!

On 6 July 2026, the UNCITRAL adopted several texts prepared by Working Group II (Dispute Settlement) concerning arbitral awards in electronic form and electronic notices of arbitration, including:

1. Recommendation regarding the interpretation of the New York Convention with respect to arbitral awards in electronic form, which recommends that the New York Convention “be interpreted in a manner that an arbitral award is not refused recognition or enforcement on the sole ground that it is in electronic form,” reflecting the principle of non-discrimination.

2. Amendments to the Model Law, principally including:

(1) Article 2: New provisions are added to provide that “‘[a]rbitral award’ or ‘award’ includes an award in electronic form; an ‘award in electronic form’ means an award made by means of a data message” and to provide definitions of “data message” and “electronic communication.”

(2) Article 3: With respect to the circumstances in which a written communication “is deemed to have been received,” in addition to the existing provisions concerning delivery by hand or delivery to the addressee’s place of business, habitual residence or mailing address, a new method is added, namely “or transmitted by electronic communication that provides a record of transmission to an electronic address that is specifically designated for this purpose.”

(3) Article 31: A new provision is added stating that “[i]f the parties agree or, in the absence of such agreement neither party objects, the arbitral tribunal may make an award in electronic form.”

(4) Article 35: A new provision is added stating that “[a]n award shall not be refused recognition or enforcement solely on the ground that it is in electronic form.”

3. In conjunction with the above Recommendation regarding the interpretation of the New York Convention and the amendments to the Model Law, corresponding additions and amendments have also been made to the Explanatory Note to the Model Law and to the Notes on Organizing Arbitral Proceedings adopted in 2016.

The official UNCITRAL website has not yet published an updated version of the Model Law incorporating the aforementioned amendments. Nevertheless, based on the information currently available, the adoption of these draft texts reflects the needs of the digital era and prevailing arbitral practice, and their impact on arbitration practice, dispute resolution, and the cross-border recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards warrants close attention.

References:

The draft texts approved by UNCITRAL Working Group II are set out in the Annex to the Report of Working Group II (Dispute Settlement) on the work of its eighty-third session (New York, 16–20 February 2026): https://docs.un.org/en/A/CN.9/1237 (English); https://docs.un.org/zh/A/CN.9/1237 (Chinese)

Agenda of the fifty-ninth session of UNCITRAL: https://docs.un.org/en/A/CN.9/1235/Rev.1

United Nations press release (7 July 2026), “UNCITRAL adopts key texts to facilitate use of arbitral awards and notices of arbitration in electronic form:” https://unis.unvienna.org/....../2026/unisl399.html