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California Ethics Standards for Neutral Arbitrators in Contractual Arbitration – 2026

The Judicial Council's seventeen ethics standards for a neutral arbitrator in a contractual arbitration held in California, adopted under Code of Civil Procedure section 1281.85: the arbitrator's duties to disclose, to refuse an appointment, and to step aside when disqualified, and the rules on gifts, future professional relationships, conduct of the hearing, ex parte communications, confidentiality, fees, and marketing, with the advisory committee comments. Standard 3 sets out which arbitrations they do not cover, among them party arbitrators and court-ordered judicial arbitration.

Browse all 17 rules of the 2026 edition below. Each rule includes the full text, a plain-English summary, committee notes, amendment history, and cross-references to related rules. Use the search box to find rules by keyword or number.

Standard 1 Purpose, intent, and construction Standard 2 Definitions Standard 3 Application and effective date Standard 4 Duration of duty Standard 5 General duty Standard 6 Duty to refuse appointment Standard 7 Disclosure Standard 8 Additional disclosures in consumer arbitrations administered by a provider organization Standard 9 Arbitrators' duty to inform themselves about matters to be disclosed Standard 10 Disqualification Standard 11 Duty to refuse gift, bequest, or favor Standard 12 Duties and limitations regarding future professional relationships or employment Standard 13 Conduct of proceeding Standard 14 Ex parte communications Standard 15 Confidentiality Standard 16 Compensation Standard 17 Marketing