India: Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration

The Supreme Court of India has clarified the interplay between Sections 33 and 34(3) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, establishing that the limitation period for challenging an arbitral award is deferred regardless of the nature or outcome of correction applications filed under Section 33. This landmark ruling addresses whether parties must file simultaneous remedies or can await tribunal decisions on correction applications before initiating challenge proceedings.

The Supreme Court of India has significantly altered the landscape for enforcing foreign summary judgments in India by holding that English summary judgments refusing leave to defend cannot be considered judgments "on the merits" under Indian law. This landmark ruling examines whether a foreign court's refusal to grant leave to defend, despite the existence of bona fide triable issues, satisfies the requirements of natural justice and merits-based adjudication under the Code of Civil Procedure.

The judgment consolidates many petitions filed by individuals with varied backgrounds, including persons who have been acquitted of criminal charges, parties to matrimonial disputes, individuals whose names appeared incidentally in judicial records, amongst others