Chapter 38B: Uniform Arbitration Act · Not amended since adoption on record · Last verified August 3, 2026
In one sentenceLets the arbitrator, on a party's motion filed within twenty days of receiving notice of the award, modify or correct it for a mathematical or descriptive mistake, an incomplete award, or to clarify it, and lets a court refer the same questions back to the arbitrator.
B.A motion under subsection A of this section must be made and notice given to all parties within twenty (20) days after the movant receives notice of the award.
C.A party to the arbitration proceeding must give notice of any objection to the motion within ten (10) days after receipt of the notice.
D.If a motion to the court is pending under Section 23, 24 or 25 of this act, the court may submit the claim to the arbitrator to consider whether to modify or correct the award:
1.Upon a ground stated in paragraph 1 or 3 of subsection A of Section 25 of this act;
2.Because the arbitrator has not made a final and definite award upon a claim submitted by the parties to the arbitration proceeding; or
E.An award modified or corrected pursuant to this section is subject to the provisions of subsection A of Section 20 of this act and Sections 23, 24 and 25 of this act.
Amendment History
Added by Laws 2005, SB 873, c. 364, §21, eff. 1/1/2006.
Plain-English Summary
Section 1871 gives the arbitrator -- not just a court -- the power to fix problems with an award after it's issued. On a party's motion, the arbitrator may modify or correct the award for a ground listed in Section 1875(A)(1) or (3), such as an evident mathematical error or an imperfection in form; because the arbitrator didn't make a final and definite award on a claim the parties submitted; or just to clarify the award. That motion, with notice to every party, must come within twenty days after the moving party receives notice of the award, and any other party has ten days after receiving that notice to object.
If a motion to confirm, vacate, or modify the award is already pending in court under Section 1873, 1874, or 1875, the court may instead submit the claim to the arbitrator to consider modifying or correcting it on the same three grounds. Either way, an award the arbitrator modifies or corrects under this section is still subject to the recordkeeping rule in Section 1870(A) and to confirmation, vacatur, and modification under Sections 1873 through 1875.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the arbitrator fix a mistake in their own award, or do I have to go to court?
The arbitrator can fix it directly. Section 1871 lets the arbitrator modify or correct the award for a mathematical or descriptive error, an incomplete award, or just to clarify it, on a party's motion.
How long do I have to ask the arbitrator to modify an award?
Twenty days after receiving notice of the award, with notice to all other parties, who then have ten days to object.
What's the difference between this section and Section 1875?
This section lets the arbitrator fix the award directly, on the same grounds -- a math or description error, or an imperfection in form -- that Section 1875 lets a court use to modify or correct an award through a court motion.
Can a court send the case back to the arbitrator to fix the award instead of doing it itself?
Yes. If a motion is already pending under Section 1873, 1874, or 1875, the court may submit the claim to the arbitrator to consider modifying or correcting it.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
Title 12 of the Oklahoma Statutes, enacted by the Oklahoma Legislature.
Last verified August 3, 2026.
· Official source
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