Arbitration
Technical Deficiencies, Including Pagination And Affidavit Attestation, Do Not Render Section 34 Under A&C Act Non-Est: Delhi High Court
The High Court of Delhi has held that technical deficiencies, including pagination and affidavit attestation, do not invalidate petitions under Section 34 of the A&C Act.The bench of Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri held that every objection in the filing would not render a petition non-est and it is only the defects that goes to the root of the matter that would make the filing non-est....
Participation In Arbitration And Filing Section 29(A) Application Not To Preclude Challenge To Arbitrator's Eligibility: Delhi High Court
The High Court of Delhi has held that mere participation of a party in the arbitration proceeding cannot be deemed to be a waiver under Section 12(5) of the A&C Act.The bench of Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri held that filing an application under Section 29(A) does not amount to an express waiver in writing of the right to challenge the arbitrator's ineligibility under Section 12(5). The...
Allahabad High Court Holds That Improper Notice Invalidates Ex-Parte Arbitral Award
The Allahabad High Court has held that improper notice of arbitration invalidates an arbitration award passed ex-parte.The bench of Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal held that Section 14(2) of the Arbitration Act, 1940 requires that notice be given to the parties after the arbitrators or umpire have signed the award. Without proper notice, the court held that the proceedings leading to the...
Calcutta High Court Dismisses Plea For Appointing Arbitrator, Says Time-Barred Claim Cannot Be Resurrected By S.43(4) Of A&C Act
The Calcutta High Court has recently held that Section 43(4) of the Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996, (1996 Act) must defer to the provisions of the Limitation Act and that the period of limitation cannot be extended to create a new window after the expiry of the limitation.In dismissing a plea for appointment of an arbitrator under Section 11 of the Act as time-barred, a single bench...
A Party Cannot Unilaterally Appoint The Presiding Arbitrator Upon The Failure Of The Nominee Arbitrators To Reach A Consensus: Delhi High Court
The High Court of Delhi has held that a party cannot unilaterally appoint the presiding arbitrator upon the failure of the nominee arbitrators to reach a consensus.The bench of Justice Sachin Datta held that a procedure, allowing the Director General of a party to appoint the presiding arbitrator upon the failure of the nominee arbitrators to mutually appoint the presiding arbitrator, is...
Court Can Extend Period Of Arbitral Tribunal Even If Application Is Made After Time Limit: Bombay High Court
The High Court of Bombay has held that Section 29A permits the court to extend the mandate of the arbitral tribunal even when the application is made after the expiry of time limit provided therein.The bench of Justice Manish Pitale clarified that Section 29A(4) allows the Court to extend the arbitrator's mandate either before or after the specified period's expiry, provided sufficient...
Allahabad High Court Upholds The Termination Of The Arbitrator's Mandate, Citing An Unjustified Eight-Year Delay In Proceedings
The Allahabad High Court has upheld the termination of the Arbitrator's mandate, citing an unjustified eight-year delay in proceedings.The bench of Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal observed that the arbitrator sat over the arbitral proceedings for 8 long years without any progress and passed the award in haste after the application seeking its removal was made. Ergo, the Court held that...
Calcutta High Court Allows Appeal Against Single Bench Order Partially Upholding Arbitral Award In Favour Of Reliance Infrastructure Limited
The Calcutta High Court has recently admitted appeals against an order which partially upheld an arbitral award in favour of Reliance Infrastructure Limited ("RIL") against Damodar Valley Corporation ("DVC").A division bench of Justice IP Mukherji and Justice Biswaroop Chowdhury admitted appeals preferred by both DVC and RIL, against the judgement of a single judge which had partially upheld...
Principle Of 'Alter Ego' Or 'Piercing Corporate Veil' Not The Basis For 'Group Of Companies' Doctrine : Supreme Court
While approving the 'group of companies' doctrine in the arbitration law jurisprudence, the Supreme Court clarified that the principle of "alter ego" or "piercing the corporate veil" cannot be the basis for applying this doctrine.The Constitution Bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice Hrishikesh Roy, PS Narasimha, JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra was answering a...
Tribunal Didn't Meet Objections Raised, Allahabad High Court Sets Aside Arbitral Award, Remits Case To Tribunal
The Allahabad High Court has held that under Section 34(4) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, the High Court can set aside an arbitral award and remit the case back to the Arbitral Tribunal for a fresh decision.The bench comprising Justice Ajay Bhanot placed reliance on the judgment of the Apex Court in National Highways Authority of India Vs. P. Nagaraju and Ors to hold...
Arbitration Agreement Can Bind Non-Signatories: Supreme Court Upholds 'Group Of Companies' Doctrine
A Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court on Wednesday (December 6) held that an arbitration agreement can bind non-signatories as per the "group of companies" doctrine. "The 'group of companies' doctrine must be retained in the Indian arbitration jurisprudence considering its utility in determining the intention of the parties in the context of complex transactions involving multiple parties...
Arbitration Monthly Round-Up: November 2023
International Judgments Hong Kong Court Refuses To Enforce A Mainland Arbitration Award For Failure Of Arbitrator To Meaningfully Engage With Arbitral Proceedings Case Title: SONG LIHUA v. LEE CHEE HON, CONSTRUCTION AND ARBITRATION PROCEEDINGS NO. 111 OF 2022 Citation: [2023] HKCFI 2540 The Hong Kong Court of First Instance has refused enforcement of a Mainland (China) award...