Ordinance approved for amendments to Arbitration and Conciliation Act
Moneylife Digital Team 31 December 2014

This less politically contentious change could help get quicker decisions and improve the entire arbitration process

 

With all political and public focus on the ordinance for the changes to the Land Acquisition Act, another ordinance has slipped by relatively unnoticed. The cabinet approved an ordinance to amend the Arbitration and Conciliation Act yesterday.
 
The ordinance has been sent to the President and will come into force once it gains assent from President Pranab Mukherjee.
 
The changes in the Act will make it mandatory for the Presiding Judge/ officer to clear the case within 9 months. This is aimed at encouraging foreign investors to come into India and trust the focus of the administration on speedy disposal of disputes.
 
The Act still has a provision for an extension for the settlement proceedings but the High Court will have the choice to allow or disallow such an extension.
 
As the recent past shows, many high-profile cases like the Vodafone transfer pricing case and the Reliance gas pricing case decided to avail of arbitration. Considering the large volume of cases that involve such disputes, this comes as a welcome sign.
 
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