§ 172.149.Extension of Time

A short safety valve for the two preceding sections.

The tribunal may extend the period within which it may correct, interpret or make an additional award.

The standard is necessity — the extension is available if necessary.

The 30-day and 60-day periods are demanding. Reconvening a tribunal whose members are on three continents takes time, and a request that raises a real question may need more than a month.

The power belongs to the tribunal, not to a court, which keeps the post-award process inside the arbitration.

The tribunal has authority to act despite termination. Section 172.118(c) preserves its mandate for exactly these three tasks.

Extension affects finality. Section 172.118(a) makes the award final on expiration of the applicable period under Section 172.147, and this section can move that date.

Court deadlines are unaffected by it. The 90-day periods for vacating or modifying under Chapter 171’s Subchapter D run from delivery of the award.

The section is one line, and it is the difference between a workable process and an artificial one.

The extension is for the tribunal’s own deadlines only. Nothing here moves a party’s 30-day window to make a request.

Distance is the usual reason it is needed. Reconvening three arbitrators in different time zones to agree on a correction takes longer than the calendar suggests.

An extension should be recorded, since the finality of the award under Section 172.118(a) turns on the applicable period.