Originally from World Arbitration And Mediation Review (WAMR)

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I. INTRODUCTION
Much of the existing literature addressing the arbitrator’s
failure to conform to his or her duties, responsibilities, and the
applicable sanctions for those violations has focused on claims of
alleged arbitrator misconduct by affected parties. Indeed, specific
duties may be imposed by, and recourses made available to,
parties who may challenge the independence and/or impartiality
of an arbitrator. However, it may well be the case that some
incidents of arbitrator misconduct are first discovered by her/his
co-panelists, particularly arising from ex parte communications
during deliberations.
Current ethical principles on arbitrator conduct fail to impose
a clear duty to report misconduct of co-panelists, while local laws
and rules of arbitration do not add any direction, exacerbating the
lack of guidance. In addition, practical and equitable concerns of
enforceability or validity of an award may discourage arbitrators
from reporting misconduct, especially when the dissenting
arbitrator is the one engaging in the misconduct. This article
argues that, while much of the existing literature focuses on the
need for clarity on arbitral duties, the enactment of guidelines to
address a co-arbitrator’s misconduct would provide a framework
for arbitrators to address the misconduct of a co-arbitrator.
II. DO ARBITRATORS HAVE A DUTY TO ACT WHEN FACED WITH KNOWLEDGE
OF BREACH OF INTEGRITY BY ONE OF ITS MEMBERS?
An assessment of existing laws and rules demonstrates that
arbitrators have limited guidance in discerning what their ethical
duties are with regard to reporting potential misconduct.
Although the rules of ethics issued by one or more arbitral
institutions may include a procedure addressing an arbitrator’s
ethical or legal violation, this procedure alone is insufficient. The