Synopsis By: Dissen - Proceeding Author: Thomas S. Adair

The labor contract or the submission agreement defines the authority of the arbitrator. Arbitrators should visit statutory law in a case only if they possess special competence in that area and the issue is within the scope of the submission agreement, and should otherwise restrict themselves to the contract. To the extent that an arbitrator feels compelled to address an apparent inconsistency between the parties’ agreement and federal statute, the arbitrator should confine any comment to dicta.