Hiscox v Outhwaite [1992] 1 AC 562

Citation

• Full case name: Hiscox (suing on his own behalf and on behalf of the members of Syndicate 33 at Lloyd’s) v Outhwaite
• Reported at: [1992] 1 AC 562
• Court: House of Lords
• Judgment: 1991 (pre-neutral citation)
• Subject: arbitration; where an award is made; the New York Convention; supervisory jurisdiction of the English court

Facts

A dispute in the Lloyd’s market between Mr Hiscox, suing on behalf of the members of Syndicate 33, and Mr Outhwaite was referred to arbitration. The arbitration agreement provided for London as the seat.

The arbitrator prepared his award in England but signed it in Paris. The question was where the award had been “made”, which mattered because it determined whether the award was a Convention award and how far the English court retained control over it.

Decision

The House of Lords held that the award was made where it was signed, namely in Paris. It was therefore a Convention award for the purposes of the Arbitration Act 1975, which gives effect in England and Wales to the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards.

The House also held that the English court nevertheless retained its supervisory jurisdiction over the arbitration — over applications for leave to appeal, for further reasons and for remission — because the arbitration was seated in England and governed by English law. The two conclusions sit together: the place where the award was physically made was not the same as the seat, and it was the seat that carried the supervisory jurisdiction.

Reversed by statute

The practical result was widely regarded as unsatisfactory, and Parliament dealt with it when the law of arbitration was overhauled five years later. Section 53 of the Arbitration Act 1996 provides:

“Unless otherwise agreed by the parties, where the seat of the arbitration is in England and Wales or Northern Ireland, any award in the proceedings shall be treated as made there, regardless of where it was signed, despatched or delivered to any of the parties.”

For arbitrations seated in England and Wales or Northern Ireland, therefore, the question decided in Hiscox v Outhwaite no longer arises. The case survives as an illustration of how much can turn on a detail of an arbitration clause that nobody thought about when the contract was placed.

Why it matters for insurance

Arbitration clauses are common in reinsurance, in marine and energy business, in large property and liability programmes and in many specialty wordings. They are also among the least-read clauses in the contract, because nobody expects to use them.

The lesson from Hiscox v Outhwaite is that the seat is not a formality. It determines which court supervises the arbitration, what challenges are available and on what grounds, and how the award will be enforced. A clause that names a set of rules but not a seat, or that names a venue for hearings and leaves the seat implicit, invites exactly the sort of preliminary skirmish that consumes the first year of a large claim.

For a UK commercial buyer, the practical points at placement are simple: know whether your policy contains an arbitration clause at all, know where it seats the arbitration, and know whether a foreign-domiciled insurer in your programme is bound by the same clause. Those are questions to settle when the cover is bought, not when the claim is disputed.

See also

• Hill v Mercantile and General — how far a reinsurance settlement binds reinsurers
• Vesta v Butcher — reinsurance construed back to back with the original policy
• Aspen v Credit Europe — who is bound by a jurisdiction clause in a policy
• American Centennial v INSCO — reinsurance disputes and confidentiality

References

• Hiscox v Outhwaite [1992] 1 AC 562 (House of Lords, 1991)
• Arbitration Act 1996, section 53
• Arbitration Act 1975 (giving effect to the New York Convention)

Frequently asked questions

Where is an arbitration award made under English law today?

Where the seat of the arbitration is in England and Wales or Northern Ireland, section 53 of the Arbitration Act 1996 treats any award as made there, regardless of where it was signed, despatched or delivered, unless the parties agree otherwise. That reversed the result in Hiscox v Outhwaite.

Why does the seat of an arbitration matter?

Because it determines which court has supervisory jurisdiction over the arbitration, what challenges to an award are available and on what grounds, and how the award is treated for enforcement purposes. It is a different question from where hearings are physically held.

Do commercial insurance policies contain arbitration clauses?

Many do, particularly in reinsurance, marine, energy and specialty lines and in large property and liability programmes. It is worth knowing before a dispute whether your policy contains one, where it seats any arbitration and whether every insurer on the programme is bound by it.

This page is insurance information for UK businesses, not legal advice. It summarises a reported judgment and explains why insurance buyers and brokers refer to it; it is not a substitute for reading the judgment or taking advice on your own facts. Case summaries are necessarily short and omit detail. Position stated as at August 2026.

Apex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 724952). This page is general information, not advice on a specific policy.