---
title: "Arbitration preliminary-hearing agenda"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/precedents/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution/us-arbitration-preliminary-hearing-agenda"
type: "precedent"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "a6-us-arbitration-preliminary-hearing-agenda"
area_id: "A6"
kind: "checklist"
ai_level: "yellow"
version: 1
task_ids: ["A6-T1-R13", "A6-K20261018-1", "A6-E20261018-4"]
law_stated_as_at: "2026-10-22"
---

# Arbitration preliminary-hearing agenda

> Agenda of topics to take to the first procedural hearing in a commercial arbitration, built from the issues a federal court would cover under Rules 16 and 26(f).…

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/precedents/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution/us-arbitration-preliminary-hearing-agenda  
Law stated as at: 2026-10-22

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

Agenda of topics to take to the first procedural hearing in a commercial arbitration, built from the issues a federal court would cover under Rules 16 and 26(f). The administering rules control, and they are not restated here.

## Key facts

- Kind: Checklist. Steps or checks to work through and tick off.
- Practice area: [Arbitration & Alternative Dispute Resolution](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution.md)
- Jurisdictions: United States
- AI level: Yellow. You and the tool draft together, with you directing. You check every statement you rely on.
- Law stated as at: 2026-10-22
- Status: Maintained. Checked on 2026-10-22 against the 3 authorities it cites, for United States.

## When to use it

Use to prepare for the preliminary hearing or case-management conference once an arbitrator or tribunal is in place. Do not file it in court. Do not send it as a proposed procedural order until the lawyer has checked it against the clause and the institution's current rules.

## Used for these tasks

- [Draft procedural correspondence and a proposed procedural order](https://ailawframework.com/practice/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution/draft-procedural-correspondence-and-a-proposed-procedural-order.md)
- [Track the tribunal appointment deadlines after the notice of arbitration](https://ailawframework.com/practice/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution/track-the-tribunal-appointment-deadlines-after-the-notice-of-arbitration.md)
- [Map a tiered dispute resolution clause and diarise each step before arbitration](https://ailawframework.com/practice/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution/map-a-tiered-dispute-resolution-clause-and-diarise-each-step-before-arbi.md)

## How AI may be used

AI may turn the clause and the lawyer's issue list into this agenda. The lawyer decides which topics the clause or the institutional rules actually leave to the hearing.

**AI may:**

- List the clause's seat, institution, language and number of arbitrators in the header from the contract
- Mark an agenda item the clause already decides, so the lawyer does not reopen it by accident
- Add the lawyer's issue list under the merits heading without adding a new claim

**AI must not:**

- Must not cite an institutional rule by number unless the lawyer has opened it and supplied the number
- Must not draft the procedural order as if the agenda were the order
- Must not agree dates, discovery limits or confidentiality on the client's behalf

**The lawyer checks:**

- Seat, institution, language and arbitrator count match the clause
- Any item presented as required by institutional rules has been checked against the current text
- Preservation and confidentiality are on the list, because they are easy to skip at the first hearing

## Authorities

- [9 U.S.C. § 2 (enforceability of a written arbitration agreement, with the limits stated in that section)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/9/2)
- [Fed. R. Civ. P. 16(b) and 26(f) (the court analogue for scheduling, preservation, ESI and privilege, used here only as a topic list)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcp/rule_16)
- [Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a)(1)(B)(ix) (award-enforcement actions are exempt from initial disclosure)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcp/rule_26)

## Full text and drafting notes

The full text and the drafting notes are not part of this public page. Signed-in firm accounts can read them at https://ailawframework.com/precedents/arbitration-and-alternative-dispute-resolution/us-arbitration-preliminary-hearing-agenda and through the signed-in MCP connector https://ailawframework.com/mcp/firm.

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*