India: Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration

The Supreme Court's decision in Kolkata Municipal Corporation v. Bimal Kumar Shah marks a significant development in Article 300A jurisprudence. While upholding the concurrent findings of the Single Judge and the Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court, the Supreme Court identified seven constitutional requirements for a valid compulsory acquisition of immovable property. The ruling reaffirms that, although the right to property is no longer a fundamental right after the 44th Constitutional Amendment, it remains constitutionally protected under Article 300A against arbitrary deprivation by the State.

The July 2026 edition of Fox & Mandal's Dispute Resolution & ADR Newsletter analyses the validity of granting compensation in lieu of injunction; Housing societies having a commercial stake are ‘promoters’ under RERA; Perversity is a facet of patent illegality, and cannot be repackaged as public policy violation to broaden judicial review of an international commercial arbitral award; and other recent judgments of the Supreme Court of India and various High Courts.

India had a prime role in laying the foundation of modern-day arbitration. It was amongst the six Asian nations to have signed the Geneva Convention on the Execution of Foreign Arbitral Awards of 1927. As noted jurist, Mr. F.S. Nariman points out – none from the Americas subscribed to it. Later, in July 1960, India was amongst the 10 original signatories to the New York Convention and the fourth country to ratify the same. The USA ratified the New York Convention a full 10 years later in 1970 and the UK in 1975. China and Singapore ratified the Convention fairly recently, in the mid-1990s