diff --git a/services/arbiter-3.0/src/index.js b/services/arbiter-3.0/src/index.js
index 6feacd8..b6993f2 100644
--- a/services/arbiter-3.0/src/index.js
+++ b/services/arbiter-3.0/src/index.js
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 require('dotenv').config();
 const express = require('express');
+const expressLayouts = require('express-ejs-layouts');
 const session = require('express-session');
 const passport = require('passport');
 const DiscordStrategy = require('passport-discord').Strategy;
@@ -38,6 +39,10 @@ app.set('trust proxy', 1);
 app.set('view engine', 'ejs');
 app.set('views', __dirname + '/views');
 
+// Enable proper layout rendering with express-ejs-layouts
+app.use(expressLayouts);
+app.set('layout', 'layout'); // Default layout is views/layout.ejs
+
 // CRITICAL: Stripe webhook needs raw body BEFORE express.json() middleware
 // Mounted at /webhooks/stripe to avoid conflict with /stripe checkout mount
 app.use('/webhooks/stripe', stripeRoutes);
diff --git a/services/arbiter-3.0/src/views/admin/dashboard.ejs b/services/arbiter-3.0/src/views/admin/dashboard.ejs
index 266da27..e219ca2 100644
--- a/services/arbiter-3.0/src/views/admin/dashboard.ejs
+++ b/services/arbiter-3.0/src/views/admin/dashboard.ejs
@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-<%- include('../layout', { body: `
     <div class="grid grid-cols-1 md:grid-cols-4 gap-6 mb-6">
         <div class="bg-white dark:bg-darkcard rounded-lg shadow-sm border border-gray-200 dark:border-gray-700 p-6">
             <div class="text-sm text-gray-500 dark:text-gray-400">Active Subscribers</div>
@@ -27,4 +26,3 @@
             <strong>Fire + Frost + Foundation = Where Love Builds Legacy</strong>
         </p>
     </div>
-`}) %>