APPOINTMENT OF ARBITRATORS: GRADUAL DEVELOPMENTS IN LITIGATION

Arbitration amongst other things is premised on party autonomy, one of the basic pillars of this mechanism. Parties have the liberty of deciding the procedure for appointment of Arbitrators, which is considered paramount to that effect. If the parties fail to adhere to the procedure laid down as per them in the agreement, then the aggrieved party has the discretion of moving to the courts for the appointment of Arbitrators. The said matter is dealt under Section 11 of the Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996, which has been adopted by the legislature from the UNCITRAL Model Law put forth by United Nations. The competency of appointing an Arbitrator had been initially bestowed upon the Chief Justices. Albeit the law decrees the court to precipitate the appointment of Arbitrators, the Indian Courts however do a deep dive into the matrix for the said appointment. It’s common knowledge that our judiciary is overburdened with plethora of cases. ADR mechanism provides a way out for the judiciary and hitherto provides for speedy justice for the parties involved in Arbitration. This paper illuminate upon the interpretation and development of the concept of Appointment of Arbitrator in Section 11 in relation to the nature of power exercised; independence and impartiality; time limit under sec. 11 and the two major amendments in 2015 and 2019, with the role of judiciary and their influence in helping the development of the silent facts in landmark judgments in that regard.