Commercial arbitration will go through a long overdue revival following a much needed revamp of the legislative regime governing it.

The practice of arbitration is currently "in a state of malaise", according to a recent submission from the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Australia, and practitioners in the field are at breaking point.

The pressure is now firmly on the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General to overhaul the legislative framework which has been left to fester since 1984. The economic downturn has highlighted many of the advantages arbitration can bring in terms of costs and time savings, and in line with countries such as Hong Kong and Singapore, SCAG will get into gear and Australia will finally adopt a domestic arbitration law based on the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Arbitration.

Modern, practical legislation will breathe life back into domestic arbitration, providing businesses with an efficient, cost-effective alternative to litigation as a means of resolving disputes. This, in turn, will attract practitioners, and over time arbitration will become recognised as what it is - a specialist field in its own right rather than just something to keep retired judges busy.

Arbitration will gradually start to feature more prominently in legal education, and by 2020 Australia will be on track to having a thriving arbitration scene.