AG Venkataramani Envisions India as Global Arbitration Hub, Announces White Paper Initiative
Last Updated on November 17, 2024 by Amit Patra
In a major development that will shape India’s arbitration landscape, Attorney General R Venkataramani declared that the Arbitration Bar of India will be a global trendsetter and announced a plan to have a comprehensive white paper on what contribution India can make towards international arbitration.
Speaking at the reception organized by JSA in honour of the visiting leadership of the International Court of Arbitration, the AG underlined the need for a global arbitral bar and located India as a potential leader in the same. In tune, the white paper on arbitration coming out in February 2025 will try to stipulate India’s place in the global arbitration landscape.
The event featured notable insights from ICC International Court of Arbitration President Claudia Salomon, who emphasized India’s priority status for ICC arbitration, citing the country’s economic significance and cross-border investments. This recognition underscores India’s growing importance in international dispute resolution.
Senior legal luminaries, including Senior Advocate Ritin Rai, spoke on the existing institutional arbitration in India and how it direly needs recognition more amply under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. Rai said that while a proposed bill drafted recently recognizes the role of institutions in arbitration and amends the law for emergency arbitrations, certain aspects are still unclear.
There were enlightening speeches by retired Supreme Court judges, Justices (retd) AK Sikri and Ajay Rastogi, on the comparative advantages of institutional arbitration over ad-hoc arbitrations. Justice Sikri has highlighted how Section 11 petitions for appointment of arbitrators have become routine in ad-hoc arbitrations, thus delaying the process. Justice Rastogi suggested a system of caps on the number of arbitrations an arbitrator can undertake simultaneously to reduce inefficiencies.
This event pinpointed some key advantages of institutional arbitration, such as:
- Clearer procedures and timelines
- Better cost management
- More efficient constitution of the tribunal
- Full rules and checks
- Superior oversight mechanisms
Other topics discussed during the event involved the bill’s draft proposals, as well as the involvement of governmental oversight committees to review decisions regarding dispute settlement. The evening ended with congratulations to Claudia Salomon for her historic role as the first woman President of the ICC International Court of Arbitration in its century-long existence.
This development marks India’s growing commitment to establishing itself as an important player in international arbitration, and the institutional frameworks are critical to this evolution.
