Answer ... To be valid, an arbitration agreement must be in writing. The Arbitration and Conciliation Act and the Lagos State Arbitration Law, in Sections 1 and 3 respectively, contain similar provisions to the effect that an arbitration agreement must be in writing and be set out in:

• a document signed by the parties;
• an exchange of letters, telex, telegrams or other means of communication which provides a record of the arbitration agreement; or
• an exchange of points of claim and of defence in which the existence of an arbitration agreement is alleged by one party and denied by another.

Answer ... Yes. The Arbitration and Conciliation Act and the Lagos State Arbitration Law, at Sections 12(2) and 19(2) respectively, contain similar provisions to the effect that:

• an arbitration clause which forms part of a contract will be treated as an agreement independent of the other terms of the contract; and
• a decision by the arbitral tribunal that the contract is null and void will not affect the validity of the arbitration clause.

Answer ... Where there is no agreement of the parties with respect to the seat and/or language of the arbitration, Sections 16 and 18 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act empower the arbitral tribunal to determine the place and seat of arbitration.

Sections 36(1) and 33(1) of the Lagos State Arbitration Law provide that the default language to be used is English and that the arbitral tribunal has discretion to determine the seat where there is no agreement between the parties.