COVID-19 and Virtual Hearings

COVID-19 has affected our lives in many different ways. Thousands of people lost their lives, many employees lost their jobs, and it is still unclear when and how we would return to our daily routines. Social distancing and health measures have led to the closure of economies in many countries. Different business fields are affected,…

The Complex World of International Arbitration and Eventual Enforcement

Recently, in a decision issued by the Court of Justice of the European Union, in the case of Slovak Republic v. Achmea, intra-EU bilateral investment treaties’ (“BIT”) arbitration clauses were declared to be in violation of governing European Union (“EU”) law and therefore illegal. The court stated “that the arbitration clause in the BIT [between Slovakia and the…

Inclusion of Emergency Arbitrations: A Step in the Right Direction?

The Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (“the Act”) provides for interim reliefs from both Courts and Arbitral tribunals. However, the latter has the authority to grant these reliefs only  after its formation. Accordingly, both these procedures, under normal circumstances, have proved to be quite lengthy in nature. Thus, in order to provide urgent relief to the parties,…

Limitation Period for Enforcing Foreign Awards: Is the Confusion Settled?

On September 16, 2020, the Indian Supreme Court in Government of India v. Vedanta Ltd (‘Vedanta’) settled the ambiguity regarding the applicability of the limitation period for the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in India. In the year 2008, arbitral proceedings were initiated between Government of India (‘GOI’) and Vedanta Ltd., with Malaysia as the seat. Subsequently,…