Enforcement of arbitration awards: public policy

In Noe v Ratzapper Australasia Ltd [2018] NZCA 597 the New Zealand Court of Appeal held, applying general principles, that a party to an arbitration who had been barred by the tribunal’s order from contesting the claims against him by reason of his failure to comply with directions, could not rely upon the alleged fault of his own lawyers as a defence to enforcement on public policy grounds.

The case was argued under the New Zealand Arbitration Act 1996, which is identical for enforcement purposes to the UK Arbitration Act 1996, of which section 103 gives the court a discretion to refuse to enforce an award on public policy grounds.