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Arbitration | No Review Or Appeal Lies Against Order Appointing Arbitrator : Supreme Court
The Supreme Court observed that a review or appeal from an order of appointment of an arbitrator is impermissible.“Once an arbitrator is appointed, the arbitral process must proceed unhindered. There is no statutory provision for review or appeal from an order under Section 11, which reflects a conscious legislative choice.”, the Court held, while setting aside the Patna High Court's order allowing the review petition and recalling its earlier appointment of an arbitrator, despite the party...
'Frivolous Cases Waste Judicial Time' : Supreme Court Raps Income Tax Dept For Filing SLP On Settled Issue
The Supreme Court on Friday pulled up the Income Tax Department for filing yet another Special Leave Petition (SLP) in a matter already settled by the Court, calling it a frivolous exercise that contributes to mounting pendency.A Bench of Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice R Mahadevan was hearing an SLP challenging a Karnataka High Court order on tax deduction at source (TDS) liability, an issue the Supreme Court had already decided last year in a case involving Vodafone Idea, holding that...
Supreme Court Dismisses Byju Raveendran's Appeal Against NCLAT Order Mandating CoC Nod For BCCI's Plea To Withdraw CIRP
The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed an appeal filed by Byju Raveendran, suspended director and promoter of Think and Learn Private Ltd (which ran the Ed-Tech firm Byju's), challenging an order of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal which held that the approval of the Committee of Creditors is necessary for the application filed by the BCCI to withdraw the insolvency proceedings against Byju's.A bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice KV Vishwanathan dismissed the appeal....
Arbitration | Unconditional Stay On Execution Of Award Only In Exceptional Cases: Supreme Court
The Supreme Court recently declined to grant an unconditional stay on the execution of the arbitral award, holding that the requirement to deposit the security amount was justified since the award was not shown to have been induced or tainted by fraud or corruption. Referring to its latest ruling in Lifestyle Equities C.V. and Another v. Amazon Technologies Inc., a bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan reiterated that for the grant of an unconditional stay on the execution of an...
Supreme Court Leaves Open Question Whether Customs Can Seize Goods Which Left Port
The Supreme Court recently refused to entertain an appeal against the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (“CESTAT”) view that once goods are cleared from the port, customs authorities lose their power to confiscate them for violations such as non-compliance with license requirements. However, the bench of Justices Manoj Misra and Ujjal Bhuyan left open the question whether the Customs Authorities would have a right to confiscate the goods after they had left the PortThe...
Sandesara–Sterling Group Loan Fraud | Supreme Court Quashes Criminal Cases After Accused Agree To Pay Rs 5,100 Crore To Banks
The Supreme Court recently quashed all criminal and civil proceedings against Hemant S. Hathi and Chetan Jayantilal, accused in the Sandesara–Sterling Group bank fraud case, after they agreed to deposit Rs 5,100 crore as full and final settlement with lender banks.A bench of Justice JK Maheshwari and Justice Vijay Bishnoi, however, clarified that the directions were issued in the peculiar facts of the case with the purpose of protecting public money, and will not operate as a precedent.“it is...
IBC | Section 7 Application Can't Be Rejected For Curable Defects In Affidavit : Supreme Court
The Supreme Court on Monday (November 24) observed that procedural defects in a Section 7 insolvency application under IBC, such as a defective affidavit, are curable and cannot be used as a basis for summary dismissal. “Mere filing of a 'defective' affidavit in support of an application would, however, not render the very application non est and liable to be rejected on that ground as it is neither an incurable nor a fundamental defect.”, observed a bench of Justices Sanjay Kumar and Alok...
'Seems Tax Department Has Not Trusted Even Its Lawyers' : Supreme Court Flags Procedural Delays In IT Dept's Petition Filings
The Supreme Court recently criticised the Income Tax Department for filing its Special Leave Petition after a delay of 524 days, observing that the Department, despite having an entire team of legal experts, failed to act on its own lawyers' advice and instead allowed time to be wasted in unnecessary and prolonged litigation. A bench comprising Justices Pankaj Mithal and Prasanna B. Varale expressed strong dissatisfaction with the Department's explanation for the massive delay, noting that "no...
Indian Courts Have No Jurisdiction To Appoint Arbitrator For Foreign-Seated Arbitration : Supreme Court
The Supreme Court on Friday (November 21) dismissed a plea seeking the appointment of an arbitrator in an international commercial arbitration, holding that once the principal contract is governed by foreign law and provides for a foreign-seated arbitration, Indian courts lose jurisdiction, irrespective of the Indian nationality of any party. “Indian Courts have no jurisdiction to appoint an arbitrator for a foreign-seated arbitration, irrespective of the nationality or domicile of the...
Arbitration | Dispute On Interest Rate Doesn't Fall Under Public Policy Ground To Set Aside Award Ordinarily: Supreme Court
The Supreme Court on Tuesday (November 18) upheld the charging of a 24% interest rate in an arbitral award, stating that an interest rate agreed upon in a commercial loan agreement did not violate the fundamental policy of Indian law. “It is well-settled that fundamental policy of Indian law does not refer to violation of any Statue but fundamental principles on which Indian law is founded. Any difference or controversy as to rate of interest clearly falls outside the scope of challenge on...
Income Tax Act | Rejection Of Settlement Application Does Not Affect Assessee's Right To Contest Assessment Order On Merits : Supreme Court
Rejection of an assessee's settlement application by the Income Tax Settlement Commission without offering settlement terms does not bar the assessee's right to challenge the assessment order on merits under the Income Tax Act, observed the Supreme Court. "The stand of the Revenue that the assessee must give up his right to contest the assessment order on merits, if the settlement application is rejected without providing for terms of settlement, is misconceived and must be rejected.", a bench...