Arbitration

Arbitration entails a neutral third party, known as an arbitrator, hearing both sides and reaching a decision that may or may not bind the parties. It allows the parties to move beyond traditional litigation and opt for a more swift and flexible mode of dispute resolution.

Arbitration allows the parties to choose the statutory law, curial law, arbitrator, etc. This makes arbitration a liberal form of dispute resolution, where the interests of the disputing parties are given priority and the adherence to rules and laws is not as strict as in litigation.

The parties should have a prior written agreement to resolve their dispute through arbitration or, in the absence of such an agreement, if court orders or parties upon themselves wish to refer the dispute to arbitration. However, in each case of referring a dispute to arbitration, the consent of all the disputing parties is mandatory.

All the arbitration proceedings are confidential and their details are not put in the public domain except when courts require them for the purpose of resolving any issue related to arbitration. Also, arbitration is free from unnecessary intervention from the court and only when an issue cannot be resolved by the arbitral tribunal can the parties approach the court.

Arbitration is an excellent mode of dispute resolution for cross-border disputes as the parties from different backgrounds can resolve their dispute in a neutral manner. The parties can opt for neutral law, seats, arbitrators, etc., which would ensure fairness in arbitration proceedings.