Insolvency And Bankruptcy Code, 2016: Vision 2025

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 ("Code") was enacted by the legislature as a key mechanism for addressing the companies/ partnership firms/ individuals ("Corporate") in distress through reorganisation and process of insolvency resolution. The new Code replaced all the foregoing debt recovery laws and created a single procedure to resolve the corporate distress pertaining to insolvency and bankruptcy. The Code empowered the creditors to examine and inspect the viability of the...

Pre-Litigation Mediation Under The Commercial Courts Act – Mandatory?

Various forms of Negotiation have existed before history started to record it for posterity. In ancient times, people adapted the negotiation methodology to settle their disputes amicably. According to the Black's Law Dictionary,[1] Negotiation is a consensual bargaining process in which the parties attempt to reach an agreement on a disputed or potentially disputed matter. It involves communication in the form a dialogue between the parties to reach a mutually acceptable solution. It is a...

Consumption Of Fake Information Is Injurious To Health: Progressive Steps Towards Ad Regulation In India

The year 2020-21 bore witness to a significant number of changes relating to almost every aspect of human life and the advertising ecosystem was no exception. There was a major shift from print media to digital media: the pandemic accelerated the process of digitizing the print media, opening the floodgates to a stream of advertisements with questionable and deceptive claims. Influencers marketing came into its own. According to the TAM Agency report on TV advertising[1], as the number of...

The Shift In Working Women Shifts

The Factories Act, 1948 of India in general prohibits women employees from working at night.The Andhra Pradesh High Court had previously held that the restriction was unconstitutional and violative of the Constitution.The State Government of Andhra Pradesh has issued a notification enabling women employees in factories to work during night hours, subject to certain conditions.Only women employees who are desirous of working at night may be engaged during night hours.Factory employers are ...

The Seat Or The Assets – Where Do You Enforce The Award?

The emergence of arbitration as one of the primary mechanisms of dispute resolution has vastly changed the landscape of commercial disputes in India. Arbitration has fast become the preferred mode of dispute resolution in commercial matters in India[1]. Time limits on arbitration proceedings, strict limitation periods, and an extremely limited scope of challenge ensure that an award is ripe for enforcement much sooner than a decree in civil proceedings. But enforcing an award is a...

Non-Binding Nature Of Agreements For Future Contract

The Bombay High Courtin a recent judgment dated 20 October 2022 in the matter of Kalpataru Limited vs Middle Class Friends Co-operative Housing Society Limited held that the Tender Documents and Letter of Intent (LOI) issued to the successful bidder does not amount to be a concluded contract, if there is a reference to a future contract in the tender documents and in the LOI. The Division Bench of R.D. Dhanuka J. and Kamal Khata J. added that the terms of the contract, which were not...

Redevelopment: Whether "The Business Of The Society"

The lis pertaining to redevelopment by societies being adjudicated by civil courts is a settled law. Recently, the Bombay High Court in the case of Bhoumik Co-operative Housing Society,[1] while considering the nature of 2019 Amendment to the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960 ("Act"), ("2019 Amendment") adjudicated on the aspect whether disputes pertaining to the redevelopment would fall within the term "business of the Society" and therefore a dispute under section 91 of the...

E-Commerce In India: Regulatory Framework Update

E-commerce has picked up significant momentum over the past few years, owing to the ease and flexibility afforded to sellers and consumers alike, in comparison to the traditional brick and mortar stores. The convenience of e-commerce further accelerated due to the compulsions on account of Covid 19. In order to enhance the capabilities and realize the true potential of the e-commerce sector in India as well as mitigate and address the issues plaguing the sector, the Department Related ...

Supreme Court On CIRP Against Corporate Guarantors

Section 7 of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) permits financial creditors to file application before NCLT upon occurrence of default for initiating Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) against a corporate debtor. Whether the corporate debtor under Section 7 of IBC would mean to include a corporate guarantor and whether such CIRP can be initiated only against corporate guarantor in respect of payment of the amount due where the principal borrower has defaulted has been a...

Uniform LSF Applicable On Reporting Delays Under FEMA

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the first time introduced the concept of Late Submission Fee (LSF) vide its Notification No. FEMA 20(R)/2017-RB dated November 07, 2017 (RBI Notification), in respect of the Foreign Investment (FI) transactions undertaken on or after November 7, 2017. Thereafter, LSF was made applicable to the reporting delays concerning External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) vide RBI A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 17 dated January 16, 2019 (ECB Circular), and Overseas...

Analysis Of Priority Of Provident Fund Dues In Relation To A Company Undergoing CIRP

The Employees Provident Funds Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 ("EPF Act") was enacted as a statute keeping in mind the Directive Principles of State Policy enshrined under Articles 38 and 43 of the Constitution of India to ensure social security for the employees working in an establishment. Whilst the EPF Act has an in-built mechanism to protect the interests of the employees from erring employers failing to pay their relevant contribution, priority of such dues assumes different dimension...

Admission Or Rejection: Powers Of The Adjudicating Authority

The National Company Law Tribunal ("NCLT") as the Adjudicating Authority under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 ("the Code"), can admit or reject an application filed by a financial creditor to initiate a corporate insolvency resolution process ("CIRP") against a corporate debtor. In a September, 2022, decision of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, ("NCLAT"), New Delhi, in Ocean Deity Investment Holdings Limited, PCC v. Suraksha Asset Reconstruction Limited and Anr.[1],...