All High Courts
Delhi High Court Partly Sets Aside Award Denying FDR Interest Despite Invalid PBG Invocation
The Delhi High Court has held that the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) cannot retain interest accrued on a fixed deposit created from a Performance Bank Guarantee (PBG) amount after an arbitral tribunal held that DDA was not entitled to invoke the PBG. The PBG had been furnished by Jaksons Developers in connection with allotment of a commercial plot by DDA for construction of a hotel project for the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Justice Avneesh Jhingan said: “The realised amount along with...
Courts Hearing Challenges To NH Act Arbitral Awards Cannot Enhance Compensation: Karnataka High Court
The Karnataka High Court has reiterated that courts cannot enhance compensation by modifying arbitral awards in land acquisition disputes under the National Highways Act. Referring to the precedent set by apex court, the court held, "The question whether the court could modify the award was also considered by the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court in a recent decision in Gayatri Balasamy v. ISG Novasoft Technologies Limited3 . The Supreme Court, by a majority held that the arbitral award...
HC Master's Order In Arbitration Execution Treated As Commercial Division Order, Not Appealable: Madras High Court
The Madras High Court has recently held that when a Master passes an order in execution of an arbitral award arising out of a commercial dispute, the order is equivalent to one passed by the Commercial Division of the High Court itself and cannot be challenged again before the Commercial Division. "When a Master passes an order in an Execution Petition filed under Section 36 of the Arbitration Act, the said order is equivalent to the order of the Commercial Division of the High Court and there...
Jioo Organics Agrees To Drop Reliance, Jio-Like Marks In Settlement Before Delhi High Court
The Delhi High Court has restrained a trader accused of using marks deceptively similar to Reliance Industries' registered trademarks “RELIANCE” and “JIO”. after both the parties entered into settlement. A bench of Justice Tushar Rao Gedela recorded a settlement between Reliance Industries and a trader, who was operating under the trade name “Jioo Organics”. Reliance Industries had filed the suit against Pawan Kumar Gupta and others, alleging trademark infringement and passing off. The...
Telangana High Court Temporarily Bars PPL From Coercing Hyderabad Bar To Obtain Music Licence
The Telangana High Court on May 4, 2026 granted interim protection to a Hyderabad restaurant and bar, restraining Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) from coercing it to obtain a music licence until the next hearing on June 19. Justice Renuka Yara was hearing a writ petition filed by Dark Horse Hospitality and Events LLP, which runs Babylon Bar and Kitchen in Jubilee Hills. The establishment has challenged what it describes as an unlawful attempt by PPL to compel businesses to obtain...
Arbitral Award Cannot Be Set Aside In Entirety If Claims Are Separable: Karnataka High Court
The Karnataka High Court has held that an arbitral award comprising distinct and separable claims cannot be set aside in its entirety merely because one component is found invalid, as courts have the power to sever the invalid portion while sustaining the valid portion. A Division Bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C.M. Poonacha allowed the appeal filed by Pinaka Infomatics Private Limited and modified the order of the Commercial Court, Bengaluru, which had set aside the arbitral...
Bombay High Court Grants Relief To Goa Ex-CMs Digambar Kamat, Churchill Alemao In Louis Berger PMLA Case
The Bombay High Court at Goa has recently set aside a Special Court order taking cognizance against former Goa Chief Minister and current PWD Minister Digambar Kamat and Former Chief minister Churchill Alemao in the Louis Berger-linked money laundering case. The court held that prior government sanction to prosecute them, as required under Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure for public servants, had not been obtained before cognizance was taken. A single-judge bench of Justice...
Mere Default Of Business Loan Cannot Justify Issuance Of LOCs, Curtail Right To Travel Abroad: Delhi High Court
The Delhi High Court has held that Look Out Circulars (LOCs) cannot be sustained merely because loans have not been repaid and no criminal case is pending against borrowers, directors, or guarantors. "Mere inability to repay a debt, without there being a criminal case, cannot be a reason to deprive a citizen of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 21. The issuance of an LOC cannot be resorted to in every case of bank loan default or credit facility availed for business purposes....
Arbitration Clause Signed By Only One Party Invalid, Award Unenforceable: Delhi High Court
The Delhi High Court on 5 May held that an arbitration clause contained in a document signed by only one party does not constitute a valid arbitration agreement under Section 7 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, in the absence of material demonstrating mutual consent to arbitrate. A Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Amit Mahajan further held that an arbitral award founded on such a defective agreement is a nullity and incapable of execution and upheld the Executing...
Claims Not Part Of Insolvency Resolution Plan Cannot Be Revived Through Arbitration: Delhi High Court
The Delhi High Court has held that claims that are not part of an approved insolvency resolution plan cannot later be revived through arbitration. Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar observed: “Once the corporate insolvency resolution process attains finality within the statutory framework contemplated under the IBC, the claims of all stakeholders stand crystallized and are thereafter governed exclusively by the terms of the Resolution Plan. Such claims cannot be revived, re-agitated, or...
Unenforceable Foreign Arbitral Award Does Not Extinguish Original Cause Of Action: Delhi High Court
The Delhi High Court has reiterated that a foreign arbitral award that has been found unenforceable in India does not extinguish the original civil claim between parties, while restoring a recovery suit filed by a U.S.-based almond supplier. A Division Bench of Justice Anil Kshetarpal and Justice Amit Mahajan held, “the cause of action for recovery of the amount claimed does not cease to exist merely because a foreign arbitral award has been passed, particularly when such award has been held to...