The purpose of this analysis is to provide a comparative study of the English statutory arbitration language as found in the 1996 Arbitration Act and that of the UNICITRAL Model Law. It takes into account the critical and evaluative knowledge of data underlying the linguistic and extra-linguistic features, insofar as they affect the peculiarities of statutory discourse. The differences between AA 1996, UNICITRAL and UNICITRAL Arbitration Rules are evidenced, focussing on the linguistic, social and legal contexts of each.