Under the common law, agreements to arbitrate were not enforceable. Yoshioka v. E.F. Hutton Co., 2 Haw.App. 125, 126, 626 P.2d 1186, 1187 (1981) (citation omitted). Parties could agree to arbitrate an existing controversy, but either party could freely revoke or abrogate such an agreement at any time prior to the entry of a final arbitration award.
Under the common law, agreements to arbitrate were not enforceable. Yoshioka v. E.F. Hutton Co., 2 Haw. App. 125, 126, 626 P.2d 1186, 1187 (1981) (citation omitted). Parties could agree to arbitrate an existing controversy, but either party could freely revoke or abrogate such an agreement at any time prior to the entry of a final arbitration award.
Like the history of the Federal Arbitration Act, the legislative history of HRS Chapter 658 establishes that the purpose behind its passage was to ensure judicial enforcement of privately made agreements to arbitrate. Yoshioka v. E.F. Hutton Co., 2 Haw. App. 125, 127, 626 P.2d 1186, 1187 (1981). In the present case, all four contracts contain separate arbitration agreements.