Parties to arbitration must accept awards, avoid multiple legal challenges: Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul

Parties involved in arbitration proceedings must learn to accept the award rendered by arbitrators instead of challenging the same in courts and engaging in multi-tiered litigation, Supreme Court judge Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul stated on Sunday..Towards this end, he also urged the government to look into the issue of arbitral awards being subject to legal challenges in courts."I often say that the parties must learn to accept the awards. Unfortunately the public sectors more so require this. There is no point in carrying a battle through a two or three tier scrutiny just to complete a formality. I think that is something I'm sure the Law Minister will look into," he said.He was speaking at the concluding session of Delhi Arbitration Weekend (DAW) on the subject Arbitration Vision 2030: What the future beholds?.He began by mentioning the Arbitration (Protocol and Convention) Act of 1937 and the Foreign Awards (Recognition and Enforcement) Act of 1961 to demonstrate India's efforts to become a pro (arbitral award) enforcement jurisdiction. He cited enactments, amendments, and judgment as well, to demonstrate vibrancy of the arbitration ecosystem in the country."India has always wanted to be a part of countries which adhered to set of conventions governing alternate dispute resolution," he said..He singled out two factors that have greatly led India to moving towards an arbitration friendly regime and said that one can hope to see more positive changes in these areas..1. Institutionalizing the arbitration system in IndiaAccording to Justice Kaul, the advent of international institutions such as the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and London Centre for International Arbitration (LCIA) have encouraged the establishment of several homegrown international arbitration institutions such as the Indian Council of Arbitration (ICA), the Delhi International Arbitration Centre (DIAC) and the Mumbai Centre for International Arbitration (MCIA)Further, he stated that the 2019 amendments to the Arbitration Act seek to improve institutionalisation of arbitration in India and that the Mediation Bill is also geared towards this institutionalization..2. Strict adherence to the principles of non interference by courtsJustice Kaul further stated that Indian courts have shifted towards a pro- (arbitral award) enforcement stance with a strict adherence to the principles of non-interference to arbitral awards, which forms the bedrock of the New York Convention."Supreme Court has been very slow with interfering with such judgments. It should entertain an appeal only with a view to settle the law if some unique point is raised which has not been answered by the Supreme Court," he added..In this backdrop, he suggested that parties must learn to accept awards rendered in arbitration proceedings as there is no point in carrying a battle through multi-tiered scrutiny. .These future developments, according to Justice Kaul, are in tandem with those that might take place globally.."I believe that these future developments for arbitration in India are in tandem to those that might take place globally and we are at an exciting stage, domestically and globally with respect to arbitration," he said..In his address, Justice Kaul also emphasized on the importance of the use of technology in order to reduce carbon footprint as well as to better carry out arbitration proceedings. However, in relation to Artificial Intelligence, he warned of risks and urged careful use.."However AI tools must be used carefully because it comes with risks of due process rights and public policy violations. I believe the arbitration committee will focus on reducing carbon footprints and avoid unnecessary travel," Justice Kaul said.