§ 172.103.Rules of Procedure

Procedure in two sentences, and between them they cover everything the chapter does not.

Party agreement comes first. The parties may agree on the procedure to be followed by the tribunal, subject to this chapter.

Adopting institutional rules is the usual way. Section 172.033 makes referenced rules part of the agreement, so a single clause supplies a procedural code.

Absent agreement, the tribunal decides. It may conduct the arbitration in the manner it considers appropriate, subject to this chapter.

This is a wide grant, and deliberately so. Parties from different legal systems bring different expectations about pleadings, documents and witnesses, and no default code would suit them all.

Both sentences are subject to the chapter. The mandatory provisions — equal treatment and a full opportunity to be heard under Section 172.101 — bound both party agreement and tribunal discretion.

The grant expressly includes evidence. Section 172.104 says the power under Subsection (b) includes determining admissibility, relevance, materiality and weight.

Other sections supply specific defaults. Language, place, hearings, pleadings and experts each have their own provision, and each yields to agreement.

The contrast with Chapter 171 is instructive. The domestic chapter borrows district court practice for oaths, depositions and subpoenas; this chapter hands the tribunal a general procedural discretion instead.