§ 172.117.Settlement

Title 7. Alternate Methods of Dispute Resolution · Chapter 172. Arbitration and Conciliation of International Commercial Disputes · Subchapter E. Arbitration Proceedings · Last amended 1997 · Last verified August 29, 2026

In one sentenceSection 172.117 lets the tribunal encourage settlement and, with the parties’ agreement, use mediation or conciliation during the arbitration, requires termination if the parties settle, and provides for recording a settlement as an award on agreed terms.

Full Text of § 172.117

Text sizeJump to: (a) (b) (c)

(a)An arbitration tribunal may:

(1)encourage settlement of the dispute; and

(2)with the agreement of the parties, use mediation, conciliation, or another procedure at any time during the arbitration to encourage settlement.

(b)The arbitration tribunal shall terminate the arbitration if the parties settle the dispute.

(c)If requested by the parties and not objected to by the arbitration tribunal, the tribunal shall record the settlement in the form of an award on agreed terms.

End

Plain-English Summary

Settlement inside an arbitration, expressly contemplated rather than left to chance.

The tribunal may encourage settlement. The section says so directly, which some legal traditions would find surprising in an adjudicator.

It may also use other procedures, with the parties’ agreement — mediation, conciliation or another procedure, at any time during the arbitration.

Agreement is the condition for that step. A tribunal cannot convert itself into a mediator unilaterally.

A settlement ends the arbitration. The tribunal shall terminate the proceeding if the parties settle.

The settlement can be recorded as an award. If the parties request it and the tribunal does not object, the tribunal records the settlement as an award on agreed terms.

That conversion is valuable. Section 172.146(b) gives an award on agreed terms the same status and effect as any other award on the substance of the dispute.

An award travels where a contract does not. A settlement recorded as an award can be enforced through the machinery built for awards.

The tribunal keeps a veto. The recording happens where the tribunal does not object, which lets it decline to lend award status to terms it will not endorse.

Subchapter H builds out the conciliation option, with its own procedure, confidentiality and enforceability rules.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can an arbitration tribunal encourage settlement?

Yes, and with the parties’ agreement it may use mediation, conciliation or another procedure during the arbitration.

What happens if the parties settle?

The tribunal terminates the arbitration.

Can the settlement be turned into an award?

Yes. If the parties request it and the tribunal does not object, it is recorded as an award on agreed terms.

Amendment History

Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 165, Sec. 5.02, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.

Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from Texas Legislature Online (statutes.capitol.texas.gov). Enacted by the Texas Legislature. Current through May 14, 2026. Last verified August 29, 2026. · Official source