The award shall be in writing and signed by the arbitrators concurring therein. It shall include a determination of all the questions submitted to the arbitrators the decision of which is necessary in order to determine the controversy.
§ 1283.4.Award Requirements
Title 9. Arbitration · Chapter 3. Conduct of Arbitration Proceedings · Enacted 1961 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1283.4 requires an arbitration award to be in writing, signed by the arbitrators who join it, and to determine every question submitted to the arbitrators whose decision is necessary to resolve the controversy.
Full Text of § 1283.4
Plain-English Summary
This short section sets the two basic formal requirements every arbitration award has to meet. It must be in writing and signed by whichever arbitrators concur in it -- an oral ruling, or one only some arbitrators put in writing, does not satisfy the requirement. And it must be complete: the award has to determine all the questions submitted to the arbitrators whose decision is necessary in order to resolve the controversy, not just some of them.
These requirements matter well beyond the moment the award is issued. An award that is unsigned, undated, or missing a required determination can run into the correction and vacation rules later in this chapter -- an incomplete award can look like the arbitrators exceeded or failed to exercise their powers, and a defective one can be "imperfect in a matter of form" under Section 1286.6.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does an oral arbitration ruling count as a valid award?
No -- the award must be in writing.
Who has to sign the award?
The arbitrators who concur in it.
Does the award have to address every issue the parties submitted?
Yes -- it must determine all the questions submitted whose decision is necessary to determine the controversy.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1961, Ch. 461.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: arbitration award requirements californiawritten signed arbitration award