Part 2: Arbitration Arbitration fees and oral hearings Section 20: Oral hearings
Subsection (1) gives one or both parties in arbitration the right to request an oral hearing, which must take place within 14 days of an arbitrator receiving the request (subsection (2)).
	Subsection (3) allows the 14-day period for holding a hearing to be extended if both parties agree to it, or the arbitrator considers it reasonable in all the circumstances.
	If both parties have requested a hearing they are both responsible for paying the costs in advance of the hearing taking place (subsection (4)). If the oral hearing is only requested by one party, that party is responsible for paying the costs of the oral hearing in advance (subsection (5)).
	Where one party has paid the hearing fees in advance, subsection (6) lays down the general rule that the arbitrator, when making an award under sections 13 or 14, should require the other party to reimburse half of the hearing fees. However, subsection (7) gives the arbitrator a power to award reimbursement of such other proportion of the hearing fees if they consider it appropriate (for example, the arbitrator could increase the amount of arbitration fees payable by one party where it had not complied with a direction by the arbitrator).
	Subsection (8) requires that oral hearings be held in public unless there is agreement between the parties to arbitration that it ought to be held in private. The procedure for the hearing, whether held in public or private, will be for the arbitrator to determine (under the arbitrator’s general power to decide all procedural and evidential matters under section 34 of the Arbitration Act 1996, as modified by paragraph 2(c) of Schedule 1 to the Act). For example, under that general power the arbitrator can decide to sit in private when hearing evidence or submissions on confidential or sensitive matters.