With the legal predictability and clarity given by the aforesaid landmark judgments of the apex court, the Law Commission reports and the consequent legislative amendments made in the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, the arbitration law in India has become more and more UNCITRAL complaint. The area which needs to be revamped and developed is the Institutional Arbitration in India. Ad hoc arbitration has many limitations like individual biases, cost uncertainty, lack of ministerial support, absence of regulatory supervision over arbitrator etc. On the other hand, in the case of institutional arbitration, the procedure is governed by the standard rules and regulations. A large number of professionals on the panel enhances the choice of professional adjudicators who may understand the technicalities of a dispute; the barrier of language is not an issue in institutions with the facility of real-time translation services; expenditure on arbitration can be predetermined as per standard formulas; venue can be fixed as per the suitability of parties at different chapters of institutions; disposal can be made time-bound and, most importantly, there is a regulatory frame work to keep a check on the arbitrator.
In India, there are some institutions which are already doing good work in the area of arbitration: Delhi International Arbitration Center was set up by the High Court of Delhi. Indian Council for Arbitration was established jointly by the Indian Government and the FIICI. It has signed cooperation agreements with 46 major arbitration centres around the world. It is providing arbitration services in the area of international commercial and maritime arbitration. International Center for Alternate Dispute Resolution is an autonomous body working under the aegis of the Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of India. It is headquartered in New Delhi and has regional centres in Hyderabad and Bengaluru. The Nani Palkhiwala Arbitration Centre situated at Chennai has modelled on the lines of the International Council of Arbitration set up by the International Chamber of Commerce, Paris.
The establishment of the aforesaid arbitral institutions clearly shows that a tone is already been set in India to make institutional arbitration a big success. The neighbour country of Singapore, realizing the potential of arbitration, has already set up the Singapore International Commercial Court as a prime destination for International Commercial Arbitration. It is looking forward to becoming an arbitration hub of southeast Asia and South Asia. The SICC is a division of the Singapore High Court and part of the Supreme Court of Singapore designed to deal with transnational commercial disputes. It offers translation, interpretation and e-filing services for arbitration. It permits representation by a foreign lawyer subject to laws of Singapore.
Similarly, institutions like ICC International Court of Arbitration, London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and International Centre for Dispute Resolution set up by the American Arbitration Association, are providing arbitration services worldwide.
The market in India is been opened up, the Indian government is pushing FDI in the country and laws have been simplified to meet the need of the hour. The Indian ratings in the World Bank’s ease of doing business norms have improved. The Law Commission of India has recommended setting up of arbitration institutions and Arbitration Commission of India. Arbitration Act amended has been the consequence. Procedures have been made time-bound. Disclosures in appointment have been introduced. India has a long list of countries with whom it has reciprocal arrangements for execution of arbitration awards. The arbitration claims under Bilateral Investment Treaties are on the rise. The Society of Indian Law Firms (SILF) and Bar Council of India have agreed to the government proposal to gradually open the legal sector for the foreign players on a reciprocal basis. The legal framework is looking healthy and ready. If India wants to go northwards in FDI Confidence Index, it is imperative that efforts be made to institutionalize the International Commercial Arbitration by establishing the Indian Seat of International Commercial Arbitration where India can be chosen by foreign players as the venue and arbitration hub for International Institutionalized Arbitration.
The dream is the establishment of the Indian Seat of International Commercial Arbitration.
