CJI NV Ramana: Arbitration is the best dispute resolve globally

CJI NV Ramana: Arbitration is the best dispute resolve globally

Observing that Indian courts are known for their pro-arbitration stance, Chief Justice of India NV Ramana stated that the Indian judicial system is welknown for pro-arbitration standpoint.

India's Chief Justice NV Ramana opined on Saturday that arbitration could be an ideal dispute resolution procedure for the globalized world.

During the fourth edition of the International Conference on Arbitration in an Era of Globalization, he addressed the crowd.

In his opening remarks, Justice Ramana emphasized the changes in the world since he began in the profession.

"Countries around the globe have moved from protecting their economies to opening them up," he said.

'The world's closely knit nations continue to have independently governing regimes and different means for managing issues related to intellectual property, taxation and even cryptocurrency,' explained he.

The CJI emphasized that it is difficult to get diverse interests to work together for a common goal, asserting that a globalized world requires an acceptable and fair international dispute resolution mechanism to all the parties, where both the parties get an equal part in settling disputes.

A dispute resolution mechanism he thought would be most suitable to this problem is arbitration.

Among the strengths of international arbitration, he mentioned that it is party-driven, flexible and involves experts from the domain. Furthermore, it acted within a specific time frame and provided immediate assistance.

Earlier in his speech, he drew attention to the importance of uniformity and stability in the process and mentioned that India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will have reciprocal agreements for automatic enforcement of foreign decrees by their respective courts by 2020.

In addition to the United Kingdom, Singapore, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Trinidad & Tobago, New Zealand and Hong Kong, India has entered into similar accords, said the Chief Justice of India.

According to the Chief Justice, whenever asked if the Indian judicial system was investor-friendly or not, his suggestion always remain unaltered:

"The Indian judiciary does not have a political agenda and is independent and constitutionally strong enough to provide equal protection to all parties."

According to him, Indian courts tend to be pro-arbitrators and are willing to assist with the arbitration in their country.

"An essential aspect of attracting foreign investors is providing a stable and effective dispute resolution mechanism. Both the legislature and executive in India are working hard to enhance the arbitration landscape."

The judge concluded by noting that there was no simple pathway in promoting an arbitration culture and that merely having judgments in favour of arbitration would not suffice. Thus, he emphasized the need to take innovative steps and outlined his own suggestions:

1. There should be a minimization of judicial interference from the pre-referendum phase to challenging an award;

2. A deadline should be strictly observed for the completion of arbitral processes;

3. It is necessary to comply with arbitral awards;

4. Each party should have its own autonomy;

5. An arbitral fee regulation mechanism must be implemented;

6. There should be no more than the bare minimum grounds for challenging an arbitral award;

7. In general, it is not wise to grant stays on arbitral awards;

8. It is important to recognize emergency awards;

9. Institutional arbitration must become the focus;

10. A growing number of arbitration centers should be established in order to meet the growing demand;

11. To attract eminent panelists and professional arbitrators, institutional mechanisms need to be promoted. Consequently, the process becomes more credible;

12. Promotion of online communication and proceedings should be made possible by using new technologies;

13. A key aspect of the arbitrator should be their practical experience, which must be given due significance;

14. It is imperative that young professionals are trained with robust training programmes.