In the last decade, parties to arbitration agreements have attempted to broaden the scope of judicial review of arbitral awards by contract, beyond the boundaries established in international and domestic arbitration statutes. This thesis analyzes this contractual expansion of judicial review from an international perspective. To this end, the standard of judicial review under the most important international instruments pertaining to commercial arbitration is examined: the New York Convention and the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration. The study then addresses the question as to whether provisions for heightened judicial review of arbitral awards would be enforceable under the legislation of three major players in commercial arbitration: England, France and the United States. An analysis of the legitimacy of agreements that provide for expanded judicial review under the New York Convention and UNCITRAL Model Law follows. The thesis concludes with an assessment of the impact the mentioned clauses would represent for the institution of arbitration and its advantages.
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