No. An arbitrator may choose how much weight to give to a prior arbitration award in deciding a current dispute. Many arbitrators believe that an award interpreting contract language should be consistent with a prior award involving the same parties and the same provision, reasoning that if the parties intended something else, they would have bargained new language. In such a case, an arbitrator will rule consistently with the prior award unless the arbitrator finds the previous arbitrator’s reasoning to be substantially flawed. An award written by an arbitrator involving different parties or interpreting different contract language will be persuasive to an arbitrator only to the extent the award is well-reasoned and is consistent with accepted industry standards.
