The mandate of an arbitrator terminates if he becomes de jure or de facto unable to perform his or her functions or for other reasons fails to act without undue delay, and he withdraws from his or her office or the parties agree to the termination of his or her mandate.
§ 1297.141.Termination of Mandate of Arbitrator
Title 9.3. Arbitration and Conciliation of International Commercial Disputes · Chapter 3. Composition of Arbitral Tribunals · Article 5. Failure or Impossibility to Act · Enacted 1988 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1297.141 ends an arbitrator's mandate when the arbitrator becomes legally or practically unable to perform, or otherwise fails to act without undue delay, and then either withdraws from office or the parties agree to end the mandate.
Full Text of § 1297.141
Plain-English Summary
Not every problem with an arbitrator involves bias or a missing qualification. Sometimes an arbitrator can't, or won't, keep doing the job, and this section addresses that separate situation head-on. It covers an arbitrator who becomes unable to perform -- whether as a matter of law (de jure), such as incapacity or a disqualifying event, or as a matter of practical fact (de facto), such as illness or unavailability -- or who otherwise fails to act without undue delay, regardless of the reason.
Even then, the mandate doesn't end automatically. Two more things have to happen: the arbitrator withdraws from office, or the parties agree that the mandate should terminate. This is a distinct track from a challenge under Articles 3 and 4 -- it isn't about doubting the arbitrator's neutrality or qualifications, but about a bare failure to function in the role at all.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between this section and a challenge under Article 4?
A challenge under Article 4 addresses doubts about an arbitrator's independence, impartiality, or qualifications. This section addresses a different problem entirely: an arbitrator who has become unable to serve or who fails to act without undue delay.
Does an arbitrator's mandate end automatically once they become unable to act?
No. The arbitrator must also withdraw from office, or the parties must agree to terminate the mandate, before it ends under this section.
What does 'de jure' unable to perform mean here?
It refers to a legal inability to serve, as distinct from 'de facto' inability, which covers a practical or factual incapacity to perform the arbitrator's functions.
What if the arbitrator won't withdraw and the parties can't agree?
Section 1297.142 lets a party ask the superior court to decide on the termination of the mandate.
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
Also known as: arbitrator unable to act californiafailure to act arbitrator mandate termination