Centre Notifies Regulations for Empanelment of Arbitrators in The India International Arbitration Centre

Centre Notifies Regulations for Empanelment of Arbitrators in The India International Arbitration Centre

The Central Government has notified the India International Arbitration Centre (Criteria for Admission to the Panel of Arbitrators) Regulations, 2023.

As per the 2023 regulations, arbitrators will be empanelled for a maximum period of five years by the Chamber of Arbitration, which will consist of experienced arbitration practitioners of repute, at national and international level, and persons having wide experience in the area of alternative dispute resolution.

Further, the members of the chamber will be appointed for two years with a provision for re-appointment.

There will be a panel of arbitrators appointed by the chamber who will be selected from amongst a number of competent and willing individuals, who can act as arbitrators in accordance with their expertise and experience in domestic and international arbitration, or both.

A person with appropriate experience and expertise in arbitration can apply to be on the panel. The application will be considered and scrutinised by the Chamber of Arbitration, after which the Chamber might hold an interaction with the applicant before according its approval.

According to the regulations, the arbitrators will be empanelled based on the aforementioned criteria:

(i) the applicant shall not be less than thirty-five years and not more than seventy-five years of age;

(ii) the educational qualifications and experience of the applicant shall be largely relevant to the applicant’s field of expertise or of conduct of arbitration proceedings either as a sole arbitrator or as a member of any Arbitral Tribunal, within the last five years or otherwise related to the field of arbitration;

(iii) the applicant shall furnish a statement that he has not been found guilty by a Court for any criminal offence, or for misconduct after conduct of disciplinary proceedings and that no criminal case or any departmental proceeding is pending against him:

In addition, the Chamber can invite eminent experts with substantial relevant experience and specialised knowledge in the area of arbitration to be empanelled on the panel of arbitrators.

In another notable development, the IIAC has proposed introduction of a time frame for day-to-day hearings and has invited suggestions and opinions from all stakeholders before the International Arbitration Centre (Conduct of Arbitration Proceedings) Regulations, 2023 are finalized and implemented.