ReSolution Issue 16, February 2018 | Page 17

The case also re-affirms several principles central to the operation of expert determination clauses:
● Expert determination is substantively distinct from arbitration - it is not a judicial process;
● Expert determination clauses may be too uncertain to be enforced where further agreement on initiating process or procedure is needed, or inconsistencies are not resolved; and
● The court may exercise its discretion to refuse to stay proceedings where the contractual expert determination mechanism is inappropriate given the nature of the dispute.


Note: The above material provides a summary only of the subject matter covered, without an assumption of a duty of care by Resolution Institute or Clayton Utz. The material is not intended to be nor should it be relied upon as a substitute for legal or other professional advice. Copyright in the material is owned by Clayton Utz.

End Notes
[1] Coal Cliff Collieries Pty Ltd v Sijehama Pty Ltd (1991) 24 NSWLR 1

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