Arbitration – Extension of Mandate – Petitioners sought extension of Arbitrator’s mandate due to delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and severe monsoon conditions – Claimant’s evidence complete, petitioners yet to present evidence – Reference to similar extension granted in connected matters – Court extended Arbitrator’s mandate by six months [Par...
Arbitration Law – Review under Section 114 and Order XLVII Rule 1 CPC – Grounds for Review – Application Dismissed - The appellant sought a review of the judgment dismissing its appeal under Section 37 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, alleging errors on the face of the record, including the enforceability of exorbitant interest rates and misinterpretation of the san...
Arbitration Law – Appointment of Arbitrator – Application for Arbitration – Respondent’s fresh petition under Section 11(6) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, filed after withdrawing the first petition, was held time-barred and non-maintainable in the absence of court’s permission for re-filing – NCLT had previously entertained insolvency proceedings...
Arbitration Law – Single Transaction and Interconnected Agreements – Enforceability of Arbitration Clause – Appellants sought to refer disputes to arbitration, citing a single transaction encompassing a sale agreement with an arbitration clause and subsequent MoU and Allotment Letter – Trial Court dismissed the application, treating the MoU as an independent agreement lacki...
Arbitration Award - Stay of Execution - Section 36 of the Arbitration Act - The appellant challenged the High Court's order granting a stay of the arbitral award, conditional on furnishing a bank guarantee instead of requiring a deposit of the awarded amount - Held: Under Section 36(3), the Court should prioritize conditions to protect the decree-holder’s rights, generally requiring a de...
Arbitration Clause Interpretation – Scope and Ambit – Arbitration clause in the agreement, covering disputes “arising out of or in relation to the agreement”, was not restricted solely to the validity of the agreement – Court emphasized the need for purposive interpretation to give effect to all expressions in the clause and avoid redundancy – Forum selection cl...
Arbitration – Appointment of Arbitrator – Limitation and Time-barred Claims – Referral Court’s Scope – Petitioner sought appointment of an arbitrator for disputes arising from a Shareholders Agreement after the respondent’s delay in issuing shares and share certificates – Supreme Court examined whether the claims were time-barred for appointment of an arbi...
Arbitration Award – Lack of Jurisdiction – Appeal against arbitral award on the ground that the court at Indore lacked jurisdiction – Parties had agreed that courts at Ahmedabad alone would have jurisdiction – Held, designation of “venue” as Ahmedabad implies exclusive jurisdiction of Ahmedabad courts – Arbitral award set aside for want of jurisdiction [Pa...
Arbitration Clause – Applicability of Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 – Public Premises Act, 1971 – The appellant raised a question whether the Public Premises Act overrides the Arbitration Act – Held: The dispute arises from the lease agreement containing a valid arbitration clause, covering issues of storage charges and lease renewal – The Public Premises Act...
Taxation Law – VAT Assessment – Quashing of Order – The petitioners, comprising two Luxembourgian companies and an Indian company, challenged a VAT assessment order dated 14 March 2022, issued under the Maharashtra Value Added Tax (MVAT) Act, for FY 2013-2014 – The petitioners argued that the assessment was made without serving any show-cause notice or granting an opportuni...