Download This PaperFacilitating Trust Arbitration by Amending the Federal Arbitration Act
75 American University Law Review (forthcoming 2025)
10 Pages Posted: 24 Jul 2024
Date Written: April 01, 2024
Abstract
The last decade and a half has seen interest in trust arbitration rise significantly, both inside and outside the United States. Trust arbitration is a new form of alternative dispute resolution that arises when a settlor includes language in a trust requiring beneficiaries to arbitrate any disputes that might arise among themselves or with the trustee. While many people favor the use of arbitration in these types of “internal” trust disputes, the unique nature of trust law has presented a number of different challenges.
A growing number of U.S. states have considered these issues judicially or legislatively, providing a certain degree of certainty for parties involved in disputes that arise entirely within those states. However, trust arbitration – like trusts themselves – frequently includes interstate or international elements, creating conflict of laws concerns about which trust arbitration law should apply in a multi-jurisdictional dispute. While the problem might be resolved through application of the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), which was created to facilitate interstate and international arbitration, the FAA is not currently well-suited to the distinctive issues related to trust arbitration.
This Article outlines the current state of trust arbitration in the United States and analyzes how the FAA might apply to trust arbitration. The Article also discusses how the FAA might be amended to better suit the unique challenges relating to interstate and international trust arbitration.
Keywords: trust law, trust arbitration, arbitration, alternative dispute resolution, Federal Arbitration Act
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
