All right, thank you.

Including a Purpose Clause

Committee noted that the purpose clause contained in the Model Act was not implemented in Bill 48. Section 1 of the Model Act states the broad purpose of arbitration as an alternative to court proceedings, the principles that parties are free to agree on most procedural matters, and that courts should not intervene except as described in the legislation.

On the other hand, purpose clauses may express the intent of a statute and intend to bridge a gap between policy and law. On the other hand, inserting purpose clauses may have risks by raising expectations or creating ambiguities. Where wording is short, it may not provide enough clarity. Where wording differs from the wording in the body of the Act, it may expand judicial intervention.

Bill 48 expresses the purpose and principles of arbitration in the provisions, and the committee understands that it is unnecessary and undesirable to include a purpose clause.

Defining "Award" and "Give"

Section 2 of the Model Act explains the meaning of words to remove ambiguity. The definitions for the words "award" and "give" were not adopted by Bill 48. An "award" in the Model Act means a final decision of an arbitral tribunal, and "give" is meant in relation to a record and includes the meaning to deliver or to serve.

The committee understands that not defining "award" allows case law to be applied rather than attempting to condense a large body of case law into what constitutes an "arbitral award." The province of British Columbia's arbitration legislation also does not define "award."

The committee recognizes that not defining "give" in Bill 48 is a drafting choice that aligns with the drafting styles followed by the Government of the Northwest Territories. Other sections of Bill 48 speak of "delivering" a notice rather than "giving" a notice and are consistent with other NWT legislation.

Restricting the Altering of Provisions

Bill 48 did not adopt section 4(2) of the Model Act. Section 4(1) of the Model Act allows parties to contract out of the non-mandatory provisions. Section 4(2) lists sixteen conditions that parties would not be permitted to remove or modify in an arbitration agreement.

The committee appreciates the Department's drafting of not mirroring section 4 of the Model Act. Instead, Bill 48 treats each provision independently and includes the words "unless otherwise agreed by parties" before any section that the parties may alter. This approach is considered to be "clearer" because it avoids the need to cross-reference a list and flip back and forth through different sections in Bill 48. This decision also follows the approach taken in British Columbia.

The committee noted that reducing internal referencing contributes to the clarity of the legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to turn this over to MLA of Inuvik Twin Lakes. Mahsi.