"Any dispute shall be settled by arbitration': a study of vagueness in international model arbitration clauses

This contribution focuses on the legal and linguistic construction of model arbitration clauses printed in the bilingual arbitration rules of Italian Chambers of Commerce offering international arbitration and conciliation services to business. Within this contractual sub-genre, a discussion is offered of textual features whose subjective interpretation appears to undermine the legal authority of provisions. Such texts will be analysed and discussed in the light of parallel clauses published by the European Network for Dispute Resolution (Brussels), the International Chamber of Commerce (Paris) and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (New York).