ARBITRATION
Executing Court Cannot Reject Award Where Parties Mutually Nominated Arbitrator: Kerala High Court
The Kerala High Court on 4 August held that an executing court cannot refuse to enforce an arbitral award on the ground of unilateral appointment of the arbitrator when the parties themselves had mutually nominated the arbitrator in their agreement. Justice Easwaran set aside an order of the Additional District Court, Kozhikode, which had dismissed an execution petition filed by Hedge Finance Limited to enforce an arbitral award for Rs. 3.47 lakh with 18% interest against Sangeetha A.V. The...
Arbitrator Can Award Escalation For Employer-Caused Delay Without Contractual Clause: J&K High Court
On 29 August, the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh held that an Arbitrator can award escalation for delay attributable to the employer even when the contract does not contain a 'Price Escalation Clause'. Justice Shahzad Azeem upheld an arbitral award of Rs. 21.19 lakh in favour of a contractor, finding that the Arbitrator had based the escalation award on the Department's default in supplying construction material and supported the finding with evidence. The Bench held: “The...
LiveLawBiz Arbitration Cases Weekly Digest: August 24 - August 29, 2026
NOMINAL INDEXShri Jankiraman Maharaj v. National Highway Authority of India and Others, 2026 LLBiz HC (MP) 60 Moshers v. Shri Mittal Agritech Pvt. Ltd., 2026 LLBiz HC (MP) 61 Sugat Jain v. Amit Jain & Anr. (with connected matter), 2026 LLBiz HC (DEL) 889 August Purple Services Private Limited & Anr. v. Axis Trustee Services Limited & Ors., 2026 LLBiz HC (DEL) 891 General Manager Telecom District Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd v. Micro and Small Enterprises Facilitation Council and...
Delhi HC Sets Aside Single Judge's Arbitrator Appointment In International Arbitration, Says SC Has Power
On 20 August, a Division Bench of the Delhi High Court set aside a Single Judge's order appointing a retired Supreme Court judge as sole arbitrator to resolve disputes between August Purple Services Private Limited, Axis Trustee Services Limited and other parties, after both sides agreed that the arbitration was an international commercial arbitration. Justices C. Hari Shankar and Vinod Kumar observed that an arbitration becomes an international commercial arbitration where one of the parties...
Karnataka High Court Restrains Sale Of 386.541 MT Cashews, Says Arbitration Orders Bind Strangers
On 27 August, the Karnataka High Court granted interim protection to UAE-based cashew trading company COAF FZE over 386.541 metric tonnes of raw cashew nuts lying in 15 containers at New Mangalore Port, restraining UAE-based supplier Avanikailani Commodities LLC, Indian cashew trader Sindhu Cashew India Pvt. Ltd. and two individuals claiming rights over the cargo from selling, transferring, diverting or otherwise dealing with it.Justice M.G.S. Kamal held that an interim order preserving the...
Singapore Court Upholds US$490.32M SIAC Award In Favour Of Kleros Capital Against Tata Power
On 26 August, the Singapore International Commercial Court dismissed three applications filed by The Tata Power Company Limited challenging a US$490.32 million Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) award in favour of Kleros Capital Partners Limited. A Bench of Justice S Mohan and International Judges Anthony Besanko and Anthony Meagher observed that a party cannot use setting-aside proceedings to reopen the merits of an arbitral award merely because it disagrees with the tribunal's...
Union Government Formally Establishes Mediation Council Of India Under 2023 Act, Headquarters In Delhi
On 27 August, the Union Government formally established the Mediation Council of India with its head office in Delhi, under Section 31(1) of the Mediation Act, 2023, nearly three years after its enactment. The notification issued by the Ministry of Law and Justice states: “In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 31 of the Mediation Act, 2023 (32 of 2023), the Central Government hereby establishes a Council for the purposes of the said Act, to be called as the...
Arbitration Act Sec. 11(6) Is Default Provision, Can't Override Agreed 3-Member Tribunal: Allahabad HC
The Allahabad High Court on 20 August held that Section 11(6) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 is a default provision that can be invoked only when parties are unable to secure the appointment of an arbitrator through the procedure agreed upon in their contract, and cannot be used to replace an agreed three-member tribunal with a sole arbitrator. Justice Jaspreet Singh dismissed S. H. Infratech Pvt. Ltd's petition seeking appointment of a sole arbitrator, holding that where a party...
Section 69 Partnership Act Does Not Bar Arbitration Without Dissolution Plea: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court on 20 August observed that Section 69 of the Indian Partnership Act, 1932, which restricts suits by unregistered partnership firms to enforce contractual rights, does not bar arbitration between partners merely because dissolution of the partnership has not been sought. A Division Bench of Justices Debangsu Basak and Aryak Dutt set aside the arbitral award in the dispute between Sandip Singla and Jagdeb Chand Gupta, holding that the arbitrator had travelled beyond the...
Reasonable Time To Appoint Arbitrator Cannot Be Decided By Counting Days After Notice: Delhi High Court
The Delhi High Court on 21 August held that a party's reasonable time to appoint an arbitrator cannot be assessed merely by counting the days after a formal arbitration notice, and that courts must also consider earlier litigation, failed mediation and attempts to agree on an arbitrator. Justice Om Prakash Shukla rejected a prematurity objection in a family partnership dispute and appointed former Supreme Court Judge Justice (Retd.) Ravindra Bhat as sole arbitrator to adjudicate disputes...
Delhi High Court Says Writ Courts Should Not Pre-empt MSMED Arbitration, Dismisses BSNL Plea
On 26 August, the Delhi High Court dismissed a petition filed by the General Manager, Telecom District, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), challenging the Micro and Small Enterprises Facilitation Council's (MSEFC) reference of a dispute to the Delhi International Arbitration Centre (DIAC) and the consequential arbitration proceedings. Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma held that writ courts should not pre-emptively interfere with arbitration proceedings under the Micro, Small and Medium...
Bombay High Court Restrains Ex-Kidzee Franchisee From Using 'KIDGEE' Or Similar Mark Pending Arbitration
The Bombay High Court on 25 August restrained Beauty Singh, a former franchisee of ZEE Learn Limited, from using “KIDZEE”, “KIDGEE” or any deceptively or phonetically similar name for her school pending arbitration. Justice Amit Borkar partly allowed ZEE Learn's petition under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (which permits courts to grant interim measures in arbitration related disputes), holding that the trademark dispute arising from the parties' franchise agreement...