A dream come true: SILF inaugurates new building, dispute resolution centre

Vice-President of India Jagdeep Dhankhar on Monday inaugurated the newly constructed building of the Society of Indian Law Firms (SILF) in a ceremony held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. .The building located at New Delhi's Rouse Avenue will also host a Dispute Solutions Centre named Samjhauta, which will be run in collaboration with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), under the overall guidance of SILF Senior Vice-President Shardul Shroff.Through research, legal education and mediation initiatives, SILF aims to facilitate the expeditious resolution of disputes and promote a culture of amicable settlements..In his address, Dhankhar expressed hope that the Centre can be an epicentre of change in legal technology.“India's institutions are catalysing the nation's rise, and recent legislative reforms have unshackled our legal system. Our law firms now have global recognition, and it's time to converge efforts for effective dispute resolution," he added.The Vice President stated that with India's exponential economic upsurge, commercial disputes are inevitable and it is imperative that we approach arbitration as a means to preserve relationships and foster business opportunities."The inauguration of the new SILF building marks a monumental step in our legal landscape, providing a state-of-the-art facility to further our objectives. This new institution, combined with our commitment to arbitration, will solidify India's position as a global legal hub,” he said.."A dream has come true," said SILF Founder Dr Lalit Bhasin. The dream was to set up not just a building, but something that could contribute as a means of giving back to society, he added. "There was law, everything was there, but justice was not there. So, we in SILF, thanks to late Arun Jaitley, got these two plots. One for SILF, one for Bar Association of India. That is how we completed the building last month," he said..Shardul Shroff shared his vision from 15 years ago - a dispute resolution process to facilitate cheaper, faster and better international and domestic arbitration. He revealed that he had shared the idea with then Chief Justice of India (CJI) BN Kirpal, but the idea never materialised owing to the successive CJIs having a lot on their plate."Virtual reality had just emerged as a technology and I had dreamt of an arbitrator sitting in a car on a long journey from his home to the court doing a virtual arbitration to quickly dispose of a dispute sent to to him. Over the last 15 yearsm a lot has happened, and in the field of arbitration, conciliation and mediation, the progress is pretty remarkable," he said. Shroff highlighted that he was offering a virtual electronic arbitration software process to CII for free, with just a nominal ₹1 license fee annually. Subsequently, Dr Bhasin suggested providing CII with a home in the SILF building..SILF Associate President Jyoti Sagar said that the building stands as a testament to the collective aspiration, hard work and vision of its members."The building means to us at SILF much more than just brick and mortar. It's a symbol of unity of SILF members. Our membership extends across the country. We have large law firms, mid-size law firms, small law firms spread all over the country. Our membership reflects the diversity of our nation. This represents represents a place where we all come together to build a better future for the professional," he added. .He expressed hope that the building could become a hub and launchpad of dreams where members and guests are welcome, achievements are celebrated and cherished moments are spent together."So let this building become a symbol of progress and hope. A canvas on which SILF can paint its legacy forever. Let this be a new era in which all of us as members of SILF step with enthusiasm and determination to keep working together to achieve our collective goals," he said.