The Singapore International Arbitration Centre (“SIAC”) hosted its Annual India Conferences in Mumbai and Delhi on 6 and 7 September 2024. These Conferences were themed ‘New Developments and Reforms in International Arbitration: The Best Path Forward’, and brought together members of the judiciary, lawyers, in-house counsel, and other prominent figures in the field of international…
Arbitration and insolvency embody, to some extent, countervailing legal policies. Courts in many jurisdictions have grappled with the extent to which claims involving an insolvent company should be permitted to be resolved through arbitration. In the October 2023 decision of Indian Oil Corporation Ltd v Arcelor Mittal Nippon Steel India Ltd (“Indian Oil”), the Delhi…
In the last decade, India has emerged as a prominent pro-arbitration jurisdiction owing to several factors including legislative changes to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (“Arbitration Act”). Indian courts have been at the forefront of this movement and consistently interpreted Indian law in favour of arbitration rather than against arbitration. A noticeable trend has…
Most international commercial disputes of moderate-high complexity are expensive. While this may be good for the counsel representing parties, it is less so for the parties. The evolution of alternative fee arrangements (“AFA”) allows parties to nonetheless pursue such disputes without compromising their economic viability. Unfortunately, in India, the courts have opposed the more novel…
While refusing to interfere with an award under Section 68 of the English Arbitration Act, Justice Teare pithily quipped that “by choosing to resolve disputes by arbitration the parties clothe the tribunal with jurisdiction to make a ‘wrong’ finding of fact”. These observations made in the set-aside proceedings are rooted in the fundamental principle that…
It took 16 years of negotiations for India and the European Free Trade Association (“EFTA”)—comprising Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein—to clinch a free trade agreement (“FTA”). The newly minted FTA is expected to boost the extant levels of trade between the two countries. The formal name of the signed agreement is the Trade and Economic…
The Delhi Arbitration Week (“DAW”) 2024 that took place from 6 to 10 March 2024 featured two panel discussions that focused on emerging issues such as state owned entities (“SOEs”) and the role of technology in arbitration. The panel discussions came into play at a time when there have been significant developments and challenges globally…
The Delhi Arbitration Weekend (“DAW”) 2024 that took place from 6 to 10 March 2024 witnessed two back-to-back panels on Investor-State Dispute Settlement (“ISDS”). These sessions deliberated on the past, present and future of ISDS from an Indian and global perspective. This post captures the discussions from the two ISDS panels at the DAW titled,…
The Delhi Arbitration Weekend (“DAW”) returned for its second edition from 6 to 10 March 2024. For the first time, the event received the patronage of the Supreme Court of India, with Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, serving as one of the keynote speakers and the Patron-in-Chief for the DAW. Other keynote speakers included Justice Judith…
2023 saw India take focused steps to strengthen and fortify its stand as a champion of arbitration, promoting a hands-off judicial approach in favor of arbitral autonomy. The year started with the Indian Supreme Court’s first step in NTPC Limited vs SPML Infra Limited, where the Supreme Court categorically held that a tribunal is the…
The Territorial Reservation under Article 1(III) of the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, 1958 (“Convention”) presents an interesting conundrum. Despite widespread acceptance of the Convention, the Territorial Reservation continues to be a domestic limitation on the Convention’s applicability. In this post, we analyse how the Territorial Reservation ought…
Under the Indian Contract Act 1872 (“ICA”), an arbitration agreement is a distinct and separate contract. Like all other contracts, it can be transferred by way of assignment to third parties under Section 37 of the ICA. The Supreme Court of India in Khardah Company Ltd vs Raymon & Co. (India) Private Ltd has held…
The Indian Supreme Court in Cox & Kings Ltd. v. Sap India Pvt. Ltd. & Anr has ruled that non-signatories to an arbitration agreement can be considered parties to an arbitration under the ‘Group of Companies’ doctrine in India. The judgment has laid down the contours of this doctrine in the Indian context, and we…
On 29 November 2023, speakers from various jurisdictions met at a conference at Heuking in Düsseldorf, organised by the European Chinese Arbitrators Association (ECAA) and the Asian European Arbitration Centre (ASEAC), to discuss whether we are currently experiencing “A New Dawn of Arbitration in Asia”. Professor Sundra Rajoo, Director of the Asian International Arbitration Centre,…
Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, visited the United Arab Emirates (“UAE”) and Qatar last week as part of a state visit to the Middle East. This visit led to the signing of the India-UAE bilateral investment treaty between Indian Prime Minister Modi and the UAE’s president, Mohamed Bin Zayed on 13 February 2024. Along with the…
The Supreme Court of India (“Supreme Court”), in its recent landmark judgment in In Re: Interplay between Arbitration Agreements under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996 and the Indian Stamp Act 1899 (“the 7J Judgment”), provides welcome clarity on the question of enforceability of arbitration agreements contained in unstamped or inadequately stamped contracts, and reinforces…
India ADR Week (“IAW“) 2023 was hosted by the Mumbai Centre for International Arbitration (“MCIA“) across three cities – Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai. Gathering over 700 attendees from a cross-section of the arbitration community, IAW featured more than 40 events over six days in a series of in-person and virtual panels. The breadth and diversity…
The Indian arbitration bar was waiting for an important judgment of a 7-judge bench of the Indian Supreme Court (“Judgment”), which reviewed its own earlier judgment in NN Global Mercantile Private Limited v. Indo Unique Flame Ltd. and Ors. (“NN Global”) covered in a previous blog post here. The issue before the Indian Supreme Court…
In the ever-evolving landscape of international commercial disputes, the co-existence of arbitration and insolvency-related proceedings has become a focal point. This comparative piece delves into the legal position in three key jurisdictions – Singapore, the United Kingdom, and India – and focuses on the pro-arbitration approach of deferring to the arbitral tribunal and staying (or…
Muddled in severe stress and conflict since the 1950s, the transboundary Indus basin is home to one of the longest rivers in Asia. Barraging disputes led to the signing of the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 (“IWT”) between Pakistan and India. Oft-cited as one of the most successful transboundary water-sharing mechanisms in the world, the…
In 2013, Deutsche Telekom AG (“DT”), a German corporation, commenced an UNCITRAL arbitration in Switzerland under the Germany-India BIT claiming that India had (amongst other things) breached the fair and equitable treatment (“FET”) standard. In the arbitration, India raised various jurisdictional objections, which the Tribunal rejected in an Interim Award issued on 13 December 2017….
Enforcing awards against third parties is a perennial issue in international arbitration circles. In Air India Ltd c CC/Devas (Mauritius) Ltd, the Court of Appeal of Quebec considered an award creditor’s ability to seize assets belonging to an award debtor’s alter ego under Quebec law. This case offers significant insight for award creditors wishing to…
The question of the validity of unilateral arbitral appointments in the Indian scenario has risen above the surface yet again. The Delhi High Court recently, in Margo Networks Pvt. Ltd. and Another v Railtel Corporation of India Ltd (“Margo”), reiterated the conflict in the existing legal position and the need for finality on this issue….
I have been teaching international investment arbitration (IIA) in India for the last 15 years with a focus on its substantive principles contained in numerous bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and the investment chapters of free trade agreements (FTAs). I have taught at the following Indian law schools/universities: the National University of Juridical Sciences (NUJS), National…
