Australia Adopts the 'Real Danger' Test for Arbitrator Bias

Abstract

This note concerns recent changes to Australian international arbitration law that replace the existing common law ‘reasonable apprehension’ test for arbitrator bias with the ‘real danger’ test laid down by the House of Lords in R v Gough [1993] AC 646. Australia is the first country to adopt this test as a provision of its written arbitration law. This note provides some examples of the application of the ‘real danger’ test, and discusses how Australian courts may interpret and apply this ‘Model Law Plus’ provision in the coming years.