Glas Trust Company Llc vs Byju Raveendran and Ors.

The Supreme Court holds that ‘inherent powers’ of the National Company Law Tribunal and the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal cannot be invoked to deviate from the exhaustive legal provisions available under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code for withdrawal of proceedings. The Supreme Court, in a recent landmark decision dated 23 October 2024, set aside an order of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (“Appellate Tribunal”) by which the Appellate Tribunal had approved a settlement of INR 158 crore between the ed-tech company Think & Learn Pvt Ltd. (“Byju’s”), and one of its operational creditors i.e. the Board of Control for Cricket in India (“BCCI”).

A Short Update on Recent Judgments on Section 29a of the Arbitration Act

Two judgments of interest were delivered earlier this month about timelines for completion of arbitration proceedings. The first was the judgment of the Supreme Court in Rohan Builders (India) Pvt Ltd. v. Berger Paints India Ltd. (2024 INSC 686) where the Supreme Court clarified that it is possible for a party to seek extension of the arbitral tribunal’s mandate even after expiry of the period of twelve or eighteen months (whichever is applicable) within which the tribunal is required to deliver its award.

New Criminal Laws are in force: What's Changed?

New criminal laws replacing the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, have come into force with effect from 1 July 2024. The Samvad team provides an overview of the changes brought about by these legislations.

Stone Hill Education Foundation V. The Union Of India and Others.

This article discusses the recent ruling of the Karnataka High Court in the case of Stone Hill Education Foundation v. The Union of India and Ors. The Hon’ble court in this judgment, declared the provisions for ‘International Workers’ in the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 unconstitutional.

Constitution bench of Supreme Court overturns Asian Resurfacing Judgment

This article examines the judgment passed by the Five Judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court which recently overturned the 2018 Asian Resurfacing Judgment. Authors analyse the judgment in the context of vacating interim orders automatically on the ground of lapse of time and the scope of exercise of jurisdiction under Article 142 of the Constitution. The article also points out the key takeaways from this significant ruling.

Analysis of the Apex Court's decisions on PMLA Act in 2023
The landscape of decisions under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) is ever-evolving. In this article, Partner, Aditya Bhattacharya and Senior Associate, Kaustav Som analyse 5 major judgements of the Supreme Court on PMLA from 2023 to analyse the approach taken in deciding issues on the validity of arrests, and competing claims of jurisdiction.

Supreme Court Upholds Validity of "Group of Companies Doctrine" in Indian Arbitration Jurisprudence
The Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court of India in its judgment dated 6 December 2023 in Cox and Kings Limited v. SAP India Private Limited and Anr. has clarified the meaning of the “group of companies” doctrine. It has found that this doctrine is well entrenched in Indian arbitration laws and has highlighted errors in the extant law in Chloro Controls India Private Limited v. Severn Trent Water Purification Inc.and Ors. The Constitution Bench has given a coherent jurisprudential basis to the doctrine by recognising that a “party” to an arbitration agreement may be a non-signatory. Whilst this judgment is welcome by arbitration practitioners, it raises some important questions that will require further judicial scrutiny in the years to come. In the present article, Samvad Partners discusses the key findings by the Constitution Bench and frames some of the issues that call for further clarification

Enforcibility of Arbitration Agreements Arising out of Unstamped or Insufficiently Stamped Contracts
By its recent judgment, the constitution bench of the Supreme Court has put a quietus to the issue of enforceability of arbitration agreements contained within unstamped or insufficiently stamped contracts. The court has unanimously held that an arbitration agreement contained in such contracts is valid and capable of being enforced under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, and that any disputes on insufficiency of stamp duty are to be determined exclusively by the arbitral tribunal. A consequence of this judgment is that litigants will no longer be able to protract court proceedings for arbitrable disputes based on insufficient stamp duty.

Uncertainty Surrounding Territorial Jurisdiction of Commercial Court in Relation to Domestic Arbitration
Uncertainty Surrounding Territorial Jurisdiction of Commercial Court in Relation to Domestic Arbitration

Supreme Court Ruling on the Validity of Arbitration Clauses
In a recent decision, Lombardi Engineering v. Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam, the Supreme Court ruled on the validity of arbitration clauses, and whether these may be struck down as being violative of constitutional norms. 

National Highways Authority of India v. Trichy Thanjavur Expressway Ltd - partial setting aside of an arbitral award is permissible. 

In a recent decision titled National Highways Authority of India v. Trichy Thanjavur Expressway Ltd., the Delhi High Court has ruled that the partial setting aside of an arbitral award is permissible. 

The New Mediation Bill, 2023 - Updates & Highlights

The  Mediation  Bill,  2023  ("Bill")  when it becomes law,  would enable parties to seriously consider mediation as one of the available dispute resolution mechanisms available.

Case Update: Col Ashish Khanna SM Retd. v. Delhi Gymkhana Club and Ors.

A recent judgment1 delivered by the Delhi High Court ("DHC”) in the case titled Col Ashish Khanna SM Retd. v. Delhi Gymkhana Club and Ors. [CS(OS) 171/2022], reaffirms that in light of Rule 4 Chapter XVII, Delhi High Court (Original Side) Rules 2018, no power exists to condone the delay beyond 120 days in filing a written statement in a non-commercial suit. 

Commercial Litigation: A Balancing Act - Majority Rule v. Minority Shareholders' Rights

Commercial Litigation: A Balancing Act - Majority Rule v. Minority Shareholders' Rights

Third Party funding in Arbitration: The Case of 'Tomorrow Sales Agency v. SBS Holdings'.
This update considers the basis for the ruling of the Division Bench that a third-party funder cannot be fastened with a liability to pay an amount due under an award passed against the funded party. 

Commercial Litigation The Specific Relief (Amendment)  Act, 2018 – Expeditious Remedy in Prospective
Soundararajan R. and Pallavi Anantharam share their insights on the landmark Supreme Court ruling on the Specific Relief Act and other critical legal developments, in the recent India edition of The Legal Industry Reviews.

Effective Adjudication of Commercial Disputes in India

With India’s transition into an international hub for technology-based startups, manufacturing centers, and international trade, there was a growing necessity for the policymakers to provide a better mechanism for the adjudication of commercial disputes in the country’s overburdened courts. To overcome these issues and support investors and corporates in effectively and efficiently resolving their disputes, the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 ("the Act"), was instituted. The Act was also envisioned as a tool to complement the arbitration regime in India, creating a specialized judiciary to deal with the complexities involved in commercial matters.

Mitigation of ESG related litigation

Our partner, Ms. Poornima Hatti, and associate, Mr. Aditya Shankar have authored an article titled ‘Mitigation of ESG related litigation’, in Legal Era Magazine.

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The purpose of the article is to present a brief overview of the emerging ESG (Environment, Social & (corporate) Governance) trends and the impact that various ESG factors have had on companies. Furthermore, the article delves into instances of potential ESG-related disputes that a company may be exposed to for their failure to adopt ESG-centric policies. In this manner, the article brings out the necessity for companies to adapt to emerging ESG trends and constantly monitor, identify and mitigate legal risks associated with ESG.

The Indian Supreme Court flips its jurisprudence on abuse of dominance in a case involving radios taxis alleged of predatory pricing

Our senior associate, Ms. Kavita Jitani has authored an article titled ‘The Indian Supreme Court flips its jurisprudence on abuse of dominance in a case involving radios taxis alleged of predatory pricing’ which was published on Concurrences.com. 

The Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2015 – A step in the right direction

An analysis of recent changes in India’s ADR law.

General Arbitrability of IP disputes: Eros vs. Telemax Case summary

An analysis of an important recent case on the use of arbitration in the IP space.

Note on constitution of NCLT

A Ready Reckoner on the National Company Law Tribunal

Cost and Fee Allocation in Civil Procedure – India Chapter

An interesting comparative law look at how different countries allocate court costs.

Institutional Competition between Common Law and Civil Law – India Chapter

This article follows the development of Indian civil procedural law, legal institutions, and other legislative and constitutional provisions which affect the administration of justice.

“Vision Group” What Is The Relevance?

An article in a leading Kannada daily, written in the Kannada language.