A party may challenge an arbitrator appointed by it, or in whose appointment it has participated, only for reasons of which it becomes aware after the appointment has been made.
§ 1297.125.Challenge For Reasons Becoming Apparent After Appointment
Title 9.3. Arbitration and Conciliation of International Commercial Disputes · Chapter 3. Composition of Arbitral Tribunals · Article 3. Grounds for Challenge · Enacted 1988 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1297.125 limits a party's ability to challenge an arbitrator it appointed, or helped appoint, to reasons the party only became aware of after the appointment was already made.
Full Text of § 1297.125
Plain-English Summary
Choosing your own arbitrator and then challenging that same arbitrator can look like buyer's remorse, and this section keeps it from becoming a tactic. A party may challenge an arbitrator it appointed, or in whose appointment it participated, only for reasons it discovered after the appointment was already final.
The logic is plain: if a party knew about a potential conflict or qualification gap before choosing the arbitrator and went ahead anyway, that party has effectively accepted the risk. Only information that surfaces later -- something the party couldn't have known when it made its choice -- can support a challenge from that party going forward.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a party challenge an arbitrator it chose itself?
Only for reasons the party became aware of after the appointment was made, not for anything it knew or could have known beforehand.
Does this rule apply even if the party only helped select the arbitrator rather than appointing one alone?
Yes. Section 1297.125 applies to a party that participated in the appointment, not just one that made the appointment unilaterally.
What is the purpose of limiting challenges this way?
To prevent a party from picking an arbitrator despite a known problem and then later challenging that same arbitrator over the very issue it already knew about.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1988, Ch. 23, Sec. 1. Effective March 7, 1988.
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
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