India as an International Commercial Arbitration Hub: Challenges"

Abstract

India has been an arbitration friendly nation right from the beginning, even before codification of laws. Arbitration system was not new to India, however, court interference was excessive in the past, until the recent Amendments passed. Court interference was minimised and increased institutional arbitrations, increased the use of expert witnesses, disclosure procedures with regard to conflict of interest of arbitrators, trained arbitrators and trained judges.

The fundamental error of the court is the perception that the parties and the arbitrators shall override the national Act by adopting international regimes. This usually takes its roots from the lack of appreciation how the model law for arbitration is being operated. The amendments in the field of arbitration, India should be considered as positive steps being taken in the march towards shaping India into an International Arbitration Hub and also as a learning process which other arbitration friendly countries like Singapore, London, etc have also gone through during the past years. Another important aspect that should be taken into consideration is that we can see that Indian courts are making heavy leaps from draconian laws. The courts are giving more importance for granting of interim-reliefs thereby increasing its interference in arbitration and paving a large gap in making India to an International commercial arbitration hub. However, the recent judgments of the Supreme Court of India which narrowed down the issue of fees of arbitrators has become a boost to the arbitration mode of dispute resolution and India being preferred as a seat of arbitration for international commercial arbitration..