Supreme Court LIVE | "Dispute Resolution Through International Arbitration.." Says Kapil Sibal

For India honorable Miss Justice indu Malhotra former judge Supreme Court of India and currently member of permanent Court of arbitration Mr capil cul president Supreme Court Bar Association Miss Anna jubin Brett secretary an cetral on behalf of the honorable Chief Justice of India and the Secretary General of permanent Court of arbitration we extend a very warm Welcome to all the judges distinguished invite and dignitaries present here today it is an immense honor and privilege to welcome you to this inaugural program of the conference on International arbitration and the rule of law we are gathered here

today to commemorate two significant Milestones 75 years of the establishment of the Supreme Court of India and 125th year of permanent Court of Arbitration the event is jointly hosted by the Supreme Court of India and permanent Court of arbitration in collaboration with the uncitral the primary objective of this conference is to facilitate meaningful debate between the Judiciary legal practitioners the arbitral institutions and international organizations we are here to tackle current challenges and explore effective solutions to streamline the arbitration process this Gathering brings together Brilliant Minds from the arbitral community across the globe your presence here

underscores the importance our shared commitment to advancing legal excellence in arbitration without any further Ado now I would like to invite honorable Justice Hindu Malhotra former judge Supreme Court of India and currently a member of permanent Court of arbitration for the welcome address over to you Ma'am honorable the Chief Justice of India Dr Justice d y chandur honorable Justice sanjie kanana Justice Supreme Court of India judges of the Supreme Court present and past honorable judges from the various High courts who have come here to attend this event Mr R wenar trone the attorney general for

India the solicitor general of India even though he's not here in In Absentia the additional solicitor generals of India Mr capil sible the president of the Supreme Court B Association his Excellency Dr Marin Chaple Secretary General permanent Court of arbitration Miss Anna Jain Brett ancol secretary Mr damur Ravi secretary in economic relations Ministry of external Affairs distinguished guests from various jurisdictions who have come here to speak and participate in the fourth PCA India conference members of the bar ladies and gentlemen my warm greetings to all of you I am honored to deliver The opening address

on the momentous occasion of the 75th year of the establishment of the Supreme Court of India and the 125th anniversary of the permanent Court of arbitration the PCA was the first permanent intergovernmental organization to provide a forum for resolution of international disputes through ation and other peaceful means the PCA was established by the convention for the Pacific settlement of international disputes which was concluded during the first ha peace conference in 1899 the PCA provides services for the resolution of disputes involving States state entities intergovernmental organizations and investor State arbitrations the Republic of India became member

of the PCA 1950 by becoming a Contracting party to the 1899 convention on 19th September 2008 the PC In the Republic of India signed the host country agreement the PCA has signed similar agreements with various countries in order to make its dispute resolution Services more widely accessible through host country agreements the host country country and the PCA establish a legal framework under which PCA administered proceedings can be conducted within the territory of the host State under the host country agreement the government of India has Provided office and meeting space to the PCA which is currently

under construction in the VK Krishna Min baven across the Supreme Court the first PCA India Conference was held in 2017 at the initiative of late Mr fiman who played a pivotal role in furthering the objectives of the PCA India host conference agreement the subsequent editions of the conference were held in 2019 and 20 after a break in 2021 on account of covid a workshop was Organized exclusively on investment treaties in 2022 for capacity building by Eng engaging experts from India and overseas we are now holding the fourth PCA conference this weekend the PCA has conducted

sever several politically sensitive cases across the world and I will cite three of them with respect to India the first was the interstate arbitration between Pakistan and India arising out of the Indus water water treaty in the kishen ganga arbitration Mr nariman repres presented the Republic of India without charging any fees and described it as his duty to the nation it is heralded as a success for both Pakistan and India and is cited as an example of peaceful resolution of international disputes particularly where there were strained and Disturbed relations between two neighboring states interestingly this

is a rare case where there was a seven member tribunal constituted from diverse backgrounds of Jurist and there was no one who was representing the contesting states in the tribunal the tribunal passed a unanimous award which is being followed to date by both the states the second one was the arbitration between India and Bangladesh under the United Nations convention on law of the sea which is known as the Bay of Bengal Maritime boundary arbitration the award was passed by a five member Tribunal in 2014 established ing the course of the maritime boundary line between Bangladesh

and India and more recently the PCA administered what is popularly referred to as the Italian Marines case and I must mention that now Justice P narima who was then additional solor General had represented the Republic of India in this case the case pertains to the killing of two Indian fishermen by Two Italian Marines on board an oil tanker a a five member Tribunal passed a unanimous award in 2020 wherein it was held that India was entitled to compensation in connection with the loss of life physical harm material damage to property and moral harm suffered by

the captain and crew of the Indian vessel on the issue of jurisdiction it was ruled that as per the territoriality principle both Italy and India were entitled to exercise jurisdiction over the incident since the offense was commenced on board the Italian vessel and completed on board the Indian vessel however it was held that India was precluded from exercising its jurisdiction over the Marines uh Italian Marines since they were entitled to State immunity because they were on a vessel with the Italian flag at present India is going through a transitional phase in its investment treaty program

historically India signed its first bilateral investment treaty in 1994 with the United Kingdom post the 1991 Economic reforms and up to 2015 India signed up bits with 83 countries the bits were based on the Indian model bit text of 1993 which was based in on the U on the basis of the Contemporary International precedents it is towards the end of 2011 when the first worse order was passed against India in the white Industries case which resulted in the government reviewing its entired investment treaty regime particularly since it has Resulted in a Spate of claims being

filed against the Republic of India uh those were the earlier all these claims are based on the first generation treaties the government issued termination notices to the countries with whom the initial treaty period had ended however claims continue to be filed under the sunset closes of these treaties the earlier model was Revisited and a new model text has been adopted in 2015 in the model bit of 2015 The default power of appointment has been conferred upon the Secretary General of the permanent Court of arbitration where the arbitrations are conducted under the uncr rules India has

recently signed a unique um agreement with Brazil which is quite a unique model where there is no isds Clause but it provides for a joint committee to resolve disputes of investors in both uh the countries and in case there is a failure then there can be a reference to An ad hoc Interstate arbitration it's a vexed issue and these issues are being deliberated and discussed in vasp as to what are the alternates or what is the reforms required in the isds system with this I welcome all the dignitaries on the dice and of the dice

to the fourth PCA India conference on International arbitration and rule of law and I hope that it will give an opportunity to have a meaningful discussion and interaction between the Participants and the uh deliberations on the same on various subjects which have been slated during the next two days thank [Applause] you thank you so much for your insights Justice Malhotra now I would like to invite Mr capil cibal for the address over to you sir Chief Justice of India honorable Justice D chud honorable Justice sanjie khna judge Of the Supreme Court of India Dr maren

cheplak Secretary General permanent Court of arbitration Miss Anna jubin Bret secretary an cetral honorable Justice Hindu motra former judge Supreme Court of India and currently a member of the permanent Court of arbitration are venat Ram attorney general for India judges of the the Supreme Court chief justices of the high court judges of the high court Supreme Court uh senior Advocates Members of the bar ladies and gentlemen this is indeed a seminal moment in every sense of the word because we celebrate not only 75 years of the establishment of the Supreme Court of India but also

125th anniversary of the permanent Court of arbitration the permanent Court of ARB arbitration provides administrative support in international arbitrations between States state entities International organizations and private Parties further the Secretary General of the PCA may be called upon to act as the appointing authority or to designate another appointing authority for the per for the appointment of arbitrators under the pca's rules of procedure the unal arbitration rules or other rules of procedure it also provides hearing facilities and support and other forms of peaceful resolution of international disputes as well as administrative support in fact finding commissions

of Inquiry with a population of 1.4 billion people and a growth rate of over 6% India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world there are investment opportunities in multifarious sectors of the economy given India's vision of becoming a five trillion economy by 2728 foreign direct investment is destined to play a role in seizing economic opportunities where Capital earns sizable returns and the domestic e Economy is given a boost efficient dispute resolution through International arbitrators arbitrations is thus essential in fostering such Investments commercial arbitrations and investor State dispute settlement called isds mechanisms have

an instrumental role to play in India's growth Story the rule of law being adhere to in these International arbitrations is necessary to promote investor confidence consistent with India's aim to be an International arbitration Hub the title of today's conference is international arbitration and the rule of law the rule of law a constitutional principle has a pivotal role in particular in international arbitrations Lord newberger in 2015 stated and I quote arbitration is not simply compatible with the key features of the rule of law but that it has an increasingly important role to play in upholding those

key features both nationally and Internationally close quote while it is not possible to limit the definition of the rule of law lord bigam gave a famously compact overview of the rule of law in his seminal sir David Williams lecture at Cambridge University in 2006 and I quote the cord of the existing principle he argued was and I quote again that all persons and authorities within the state whether public or private should be bound by and entitled to the benefit of laws publicly and Prospectively promulgated and publicly administered in the courts close quote the principle of

the rule of law and is enunciated in section 18 of the arbitration act and largely the Supreme Court has been instrumental in upholding this aspect of the rule of law in arbitration however there have also been blips on the radar which have sent a negative signal in some situations an arbitral award is upheld by all courts in India however the process of Execution is so dilatory objective dilatory the very objective of expedi resolution is lost therefore it's necessary that within the judicial hierarchy at all levels the significance of expeditious resolution in these matters is understood

and acted upon further I have been hearing murmur of India's supposed withdrawal from the investor State dispute settlement regime this characterization however is misguided Rather a more nuanced view reveals India's Endeavor to redefine its position within the global economic order the bits that's the bilateral investment treaty regime are being renegotiated to ensure a Level Playing Field which will Foster growth in India it's also necessary for India to realize that foreign Capital will play a significant role in its investment story thus the investment landscape must be made what must be made increasingly Fertile at the same

time allow for a Level Playing Field the fact that the FDI flows in India have been reduced by 30% from 2013 to 2019 as compared to other countries is perhaps attributed to the terminations of the bilateral investment treaties an investment treaty crafted with a just and balanced perspective will Herald a siesmic shift with the Global South asserting asserting itself more forcefully in shaping the very legal framework that Govern that shall govern their economic Destinies a just a just bilateral investment treaty environment will be a winwin for both investors and Nations just as we as the

investors need us we too need investors thank you very much [Applause] thank you for your remarks Mr sible now I would like to invite Miss Anna juin Brett Secretary of uncal to the podium honorable chief justice honorable Attorney general for India excellencies judges of the Supreme Court and high courts of India distinguished participants speakers colleagues and Friends of ancal it's my great honor to deliver these inaugural remarks for the 75 years of the establishment of the Supreme Court of India and 125th anniversary of the permanent Court of arbitration co-hosted by the PCA was the Supreme

Court of India in collaboration with anital with many thanks to the core Of organizers for this privilege that is given to me to welcome you all here on behalf of anetra I'm delighted to be among friends on such an auspicious occasion 75th and 125th as my good friend Martin sheak says it's 200 together anniversaries are not easy Feats and the longstanding tradition of India's judicial system is to be applauded as Guardians of the law judges comprised uncitral's key stakeholders and most importantly are Among those who best appreciate that uncitral's Mandate of advancing harmonization of international

trade law in practice requires that the laws concerned are interpreted and applied in a uniform manner to support consistency in decisions and awards on its texts anital established a system to collect and disseminate freely available information on courts decisions and arbitral awards from around the world relating to uncitral texts the case law On ancal texts also known as clout I take this chance to salute India's valuable contributions to the case law on ancal Tex with many cases from India focusing on the model law on International commercial arbitration and the New York convention being part of

this collection this could not be achieved without a well-informed judiciary which cons considers the international origin of the law and the need to Promote uniformity in its application in interpreting the text concerned and this brings me to a note of sadness while I'm delighted to be here one year after the ancal south Asia conference that was held last year with the ministry of external Affairs and this sadness goes to the passing of fali nariman who was one of the most strong Advocates of ancet work here in the region and Beyond so sir we miss you

as the time is short I will take This opportunity to share some brief updates from ancal focusing on those relating to arbitration and investor State dispute settlement as I know you are anxious to know what is next on anet's menu or for the reform of ists the work of trial in developing a fair and efficient resolution system contributes to the achievement of the sustainable development goals of the United Nations by enhancing access to Justice and strengthening the rule of Law one of the founding topics of this conference here as it reduces the time and cost

to resolve disputes and relieves the burden on the Judiciary and formal legal system in addition enforcable and effective Solutions between parties to cross border commercial disputes resulting from the ancal dispute resolution Frameworks contribute to the development of a mature rule-based global commercial system this July the 57th session of the Ancal Commission in New York adopted four new substantive texts and agreed on a future work program for the commission it adopted a statute of the advisory Center on International Investment dis dispute resolution ancal as ancal continued its work on possible reform of investor State dispute settlement

a major Stone in in milestone in this development is the establishment of an advisory Center to support developing countries in order to address Inequality of means in terms of access to resources as well as Legal Services concerning International Investment dispute resolution a further element of the broader reform of the investor State dispute settlement system undertaken by anital once established and operational the center is expected to provide crucial legal services in the field of isds akin to the system that is been established alongside the World Trade Organization to help developing Countries fully uh benefit and um

from the dispute settlement system of the WTO this Center will include training and representation services with the aim of enhancing the capacity of states to prevent and handle International Investment disputes especially least developed countries and developing countries the uh commission also adopted ancal model Clauses on Specialized Express dispute resolution it sounds better in its acronym speeder which Includes um provisions on technical expertise on confidentiality for highly sensitive technical disputes but also on um adjudication and on contract performance these model Clauses will be available to parties that they can choose from when they want to go

for the ancal expedited rules ancal has also adopted a model law on automated Contracting uh which provides a legal framework to enable the use of automation in international contracts be It through the now buzzword of in artificial intelligence or the so-called smart contracts but also what we see on a daily basis machine tachine transactions and last but not least anal adopted the ancal unid model law on Warehouse receipts which allow the issuance and transfer of both paper based and Electronic Warehouse receipts in a medium neutral and Technology neutral basis to allow the use of central

Registries distributed ledgers Platforms and other Technologies for the managing of Electronic Warehouse receipts now to answer a question that panel one will be answering tomorrow and that will I will unfortunately not be able to contribute to are we close to a solution in isds reform I would venture that we've made great progress and that indeed we are moving closer as we come now to the development of two crucial reform elements one being the establishment of a court a first Instance court for investor State disputes and the second being the establishment of an appellate mechanism again

patterned on what is well known in the World Trade organizations dispute settlement understanding but that has been lacking so far in investor State disputes at the same time the working group will also consider and uh the the commission adopt the uh procedural rules reform that is ongoing which will not result in further um atomization of Rules as has been feared with the efforts being carried out by exid and resulting in the exid rules Amendment but simply to mirror and to bring to the level of the uh investment treaties themselves the reforms in procedure that are

dearly needed in order to expedite and control further control the costs of these proceedings so with all these news for you uh that we hope you will be following closely let me tell you that uh from the discussions that will unfold During the two days of this highly interesting and topical conference I hope we hope in anr to see proposals coming from India to the ancal commission on the de development of legislative Solutions the ones that you see are needed bring them to ancal bring them to us for deliberations at the international level discussions with

your peers from other countries in order to come up with harmonized and uniform Solutions I look very much forward to Our inv vigorating discussions over the course of the conference on how we could work together to strengthen a legal enabling environment for international trade in India and Beyond with gratitude again to our Co co-hosts the ministry of Justice uh the Supreme Court of India the ministry of external Affairs and the UN CCI thanking you once more for this honor and best wishes for a most successful conference I thank you very much [Applause] thank you Miss

Anna for informative and insightful speech now I would like to call upon Mr R wenat ramani attorney general for India firstly it's a day of Rejoice for me in the sense that we have the permanent Court of arbitration a 125 Year young institution represented by ukul Young Secretary General is a day of Rejoice for me Because India has offered a welcome place for PCA in India and I hope very soon a wonderful building which PCA will occupy and start deliberation will be available for PCA and all of us will share just across the road the

Indian Society of international law building so that's a day of Rejoice for me and yesterday as you were talking to an and as I said an just off of 125 60 years so I I was talking to her I think it's time That we India celebrates anet's role for the world of arbitration and I think India is poised so well to do that I think we are planning on that I'm sure we'll work on that lines now honorable the Chief Justice judges of the Supreme Court judges of the high court and dis inish invitees my

friend Mr capil Cil and uh senior Council and greetings to all the accomplished persons in the field of international arbitration gathered here Today to share compacts and understanding and pronounce upon the Ever Needed values of enhancing role of the orbital World in emerging Global situation this conference has significance both for India and PCA as I said way back in 2008 PCA and signed India signed a treaty level host country agreement this policy of PCA of concluding post host country agreements have been seen as an important measure of towards making PCA dispute resolution Services more widely

accessible while PCA has several host country agreements today India was the fourth state in which PCA signed this host country agreement that the importance of the exchange of knowledge and experience is very indispensable today having regard to the fast changing global economic social and international relationships need not be underscored we are Homo technological today and our economic and trade are technologically Embedded so our dispute resolution their places and procedur call for Global cooperation through the good offices and efforts of late Cali nariman the first India PCA Conference was held in 2017 followed by a second

edition of the PCA India conference in 2018 after a long gestation India has now facilitated the presence and the office of PCA in India as I said very soon all formalities in the regard will Be concluded so it is I say that this conference is significance given India's commitment to all aspects of the promotion of orderly and peaceful resolution of both interstate and other private disputes it is to be stated that India's commitment to exploring and supporting all possible means measures instrumentalities and Provisions stands under sign with the seat for PCA in India the story

of PCO 125 years of enduring existence the chronical of Excitement and Gilbert G former president of icj and member of the permanent Court of arbitration in an address on the contribution of PCA looked at the diverse domains of arbitration which are soed by PCA in the past namely Financial environment Territorial and he has his question this was the past what are the future look like there is no doubt that calling upon judges and arbitrators to settle disputes States has experienced a true Regeneration over the last two decades will this trend continue in coming years will

the international Bureau of PCA continue to benefit from this trend it seems to me that we have good reason to hope so and quote this conference like all the engagements of PCA in international understanding of the arbitration world are an endorsement of that fond hope inaugural sessions are like several station Masters waving green flags for an exciting train Journey VB vdar univers known as Johnny was a remarkable figure in the world of international arbitration and Commercial arbitration and investment arbitration I quote from one of his articles on the importance of free spirits in the search

for international oration I quote as a philosophical question of seemingly High importance for the modern state of international commercial arbitration the question is frequently asked by many which came first the orbit egg or the Orbital chicken the egg loving tribe proclaim the egg as the great egg are the exclusive source for all that is good in arbitration conversely the chicken loving tribe contend that the big chicken laid the first orbital egg other orbital tribes disagree with both I quote the beauty of celebrating 124 years of PCA is the beauty of free Spirits in not only

asking questions as V talked about in the enhancement of the value and International arbitration but Also bringing together all arbital tribes in the veva kumam tradition to continue to talk about agreements not hindered by disagreements I must conclude by placing my de appreciation of the Relentless efforts of honorable the Chief Justice in designing this conference and inviting all of us to be partners in the common Quest I hope the today deliberations will be in further answer with the common Quest thank you so much [Applause] thank you Mr wenat aramani for the speech now I may

kindly request honorable Justice sanjie khna judge Supreme Court for the address Dr Justice Diva Chand the Chief Justice of India Miss Justice indu motra former judge Supreme Court of India and member permanent Court of arbitration Dr Hab Mackin zlac Secretary General Public permanent Court of arbitration Miss Anna Jin secretary Unisal Mr R wam the Attorney General of India Mr capil the president of the Supreme Court Bar Association judges from Supreme Court and the high courts and distinguished KS Namaste and good evening today as we celebrate 125 years of the permanent Court of arbitration and 75

years of the Supreme Court of India we are reminded of the foundational principles that guide these institutions pursuit of accessible and Impartial justice justice in primary sense means and requires exist existence of rules that provide the right to a fair and a just decision a procedure that provides equal and a fair opportunity to win against your opponents adjudication is not an end by itself adjudication should not be equated with the rule of law object and purpose of adjudication and rule of law is to ensure a just and a fair outcome And decision through a procedure

free from influence of externus elements and internal prejudices while media and political leaders often talk about maintaining political world order adjudicatory interdependence is seldom focused and deliberated upon judicial interdependence is an acknowledgement of the need for judicial for Global collaboration or for resolution of transborder disputes and Issues just as disputes are natural to humans so is their resolution we should begin by the ageold tenants of judicial committee or emity these are practices among different states or courts of different jurisdiction involving Mutual recognition of legislative executive judicial acts it is the cooperation of various judicial systems

around the world which will ensure uniform application of law to the best extent Possible one of the key features of judicial committee is establishment of alliances between different Judicial Systems to ensure higher efficiency of legal proceedings at the global level the concept of justice is enriched by learning from experiences and Innovations from judicial institutions across the gold let us look at the Indian example not too long ago there were questions raised whether democracy and Constitution will thrive in all societies Indian conial rulers Justified their Rules by highlighting the society's perceived fragmentation arguing that Democratic individualism

was incompatible with such diverse Society India showed that the world to the world that this is possible to achieve this ideal the Indian Supreme Court is bequeathed with wide and expensive jurisdiction by the Constitution today this court handles The largest volume of cases in any epic Court globally in 1950 when it was first established the court had sanction strength of eight judges and pronounced 43 judgments in its first year today the court has strength of 34 judges and pronounces more than 1,000 judgments per year this court does not sit as a full court the court

typically sits in smaller benches of two and three judges despite the need for consistency and certainty This ensures diverse representation and acknowledges various perspectives within the judicial system nevertheless there exists an Harmony coherence among the benches contributing to the evolution of Law and establishment of precedents it makes the court widely accessible and I izes accessibility to common citizens of our country this court has a rich history marked by groundbreaking decisions that that resonate with the aspirations of The Constitutional Founders in response to CH challenges to access to Justice the court has proactively developed Innovative remedies

even beyond the traditional constitutional role to ensure complete Justice in individual cases this is done by exis opa under article 142 of the Constitution sometimes personal grievances were hindered by limited resources available to Citizens restricting the access to court to Address this and also to address border constitutional issues the Supreme Court introduced public interest litigation allowing any citizen or a social action grou to approach the court on behalf of general public or marginalized sections of the society judicial review far from being one-sided has fostered a collaborative dialogue between the Judiciary and the other wings of

the government for instance the Supreme Court Landmark decision in Vishaka versus state of Rajasthan sparked a national conversation on sexual harassment leading to enactment of laws to protect women in workplaces in India our trial and appellate courts reside over 26 million cases presided over 26 million cases in 2023 adjudicatory performance is often tested on dating challenge of case backlog every judicial system gapples with this challenge which is not only delays justice but also erods public Confidence in the Justice and legal system to tackle this problem Indian Judiciary has nurtured turn to innovative solutions blending with

B blending modern legal Frameworks with traditional methods of dispute resolution from Indian Villages among these Lo adalats of People's Court which operate outside conventional courtrooms focusing on informal Rec uh reconciliatory dispute resolutions stand out as a remarkable Innovation the success of localads is a testament to their effectiveness in last 6 years alone they have resolved about 130 million cases underscoring the capacity to reduce the backlogs during the Corona virus pandemic when physical courts were largely inaccessible introduction of ecals bought these forums online resolving over 7 million cases India's experience with loc adalats and Community mediation

offer Valuable lessons for Global Community arbitration is a leading method for resolution of commercial and international disputes in line with these Global Trends India has enacted several reforms to position itself as an arbitration friendly jurisdiction resulting in notable improvements in contract enforcement and ease of doing business in F5 20145 FDI in flow India stood at 46 4514 billion which increased to 6.22 billion In 2016 and 17 in fi 2021 and 2022 the FDI flow inflows increased to 8483 billion at this juncture i' like to also take this opportunity of our to acknowledge our association the

unical in its long and enduring development of law of arbitration the 1996 arbitration conciliation Act is modeled on the unital model later amendments to this act have Brought Indian arbitration regime in line with com International par we have adopted and accepted that institutional arbitration should be preferred over ad hoc arbitration we have speed up speeded up arbitration by prescribing time limits within which Awards should be pronounced we have standardized arbitration by including s setting standards for appointment and eligibility of arbitration and lastly we have expedited Or speed up arbitration is now being accepted and is

being implemented if I have to look for the future of international dispute resolution I must say conciliation has to be come and brought into the Forefront I'll quote from Mahatma Gandhi what he had said about conciliation truly a person is urate and acts cowardly when he resorts to the court of law surely a decision of a third party is not always right we in Our Simplicity imagine that a Stranger by taking our money gives us Justice taking inspiration from these words perhaps Global Community should for should consider less formal Adar methods like mediation conciliation which

are far more flexible not non non technical in dispute resolution Namaste and thank you [Applause] thank you justice Kanna for sharing your insights now I would like to call upon Dr Marin Chaple Secretary General permanent Court of arbitration for the address Namaste good evening honorable chief justice chandru justice Hindu Malhotra Justice Sanji Kana honorable attorney general venkataramani Mr cap Cal president of the Supreme Court Bar Association and your Excellency Anna jaet Secretary General Of unro distinguished guests ladies and gentlemen dear friends it is my great pleasure and honor to extend a very warm welcome to

all of you on behalf of the permanent Court of arbitration the PCA this year marks a momentous occasion as we celebrate together 200 years of service to the rule of law on one side the Supreme Court of India celebrates its 75th Anniversary and on our part 125 years passed since the PCA was established in 1899 by the first hag peace conference to commemorate these significant Milestones the Supreme Court of India and the PCA have joined forces to organize this special event it is an opportunity to celebrate the rich Legacy of these two distinguished institutions but

is also to reaffirm our Collective commitment to the ideas they Represent Justice fairness and the rule of law as I have just mentioned the PCA is an intergovernmental organization established by the 1899 convention on the Pacific settlement of international disputes it is headquartered at the peace Palace in the heg in the Netherlands the idea behind creating the PCA and I hope that I will be able to speak more about it tomorrow was to provide a solid framework for International dispute resolution mainly arbitration but also various other forms of proceedings such as conations uh mediations multiart

multi-party review panels fact finding commissions dispute adjudication boards and many more few International organizations have the privilege of enduring for so long 125 years and even fewer remain relevant and effective in a world so dramatically Different from the one in which we were they were founded since its establishment from a small institution headquartered in the heg to one with five International offices in Asia Africa Europe and Latin America the PCA has witnessed the end of Empires the rise and the fall of the League of Nations the wave of decolonization the emergence of the larger community

of States and the creation and growth of the United Nations throughout two world wars numerous local and Regional conflicts and prolonged Cold War the PCA stood firm this resilience is particularly significant in to dat's International landscape which is unfortunately marked by strife and polarization in fact in fact the PCA is Busier than it has ever been allow me to share some statistics and information last year we experience a record breaking 82 new case registered by far the highest number of new registry cases that the PCA has ever received at present the PCA has one of

the heaviest Cas loads among International courts so in 2023 the PCA administrated 200 46 cases among those cases the PCA administers Interstate proceedings investor State arbitrations and contract based cases involving various combinations of States states entities international organization and private parties moreover the PCA Services have been used since its establishment by claimants from over 136 countries and regions and Respondents from from 142 countries and regions over 60 proceedings have been initiated in which at least one party is an international organization it is true Dear honorable chief justice that our numbers are a fraction of the

number of cases handled by the Supreme Court of India and maybe similar figures could be handled by a single Justice alone at one day which I witnessed today in the morning and hopefully at the PCA we will Never reach similar levels of activity but just in case I would like to have the same war room as you have at the Supreme Court Jokes Aside there are a few reasons that in my view played a key role in the PCA success and recent growth and the first point I would like to address it is the pca's

flexibility we always to our Founders who with remarkable foresight in an era Of global instability establish an organization built on the principles of flexibility and the core principle of favoring the resolution of disputes as such over rigid protocols or spe specific methods of dispute resolution the second point I would like to mention is accessibility the pca's founding convention made it clear that the PCA shall be and I quote accessible at all Times end of quote accessibility can be achieved in various ways being accessible today means that the PCA needs to be able to operate everywhere

to that end the PC enhance its Global presence through several concrete actions which include a policy of concluding host country agreements with its Contracting parties these agreements seek to secure the provision of the facilities and services required for the PCA administrated proceedings Such an office or meeting space and secretarial services the PCA concluded such a host agreement with India back in 20 8 the signing of host country agreements may lead to enhanced cooperation that is to the establishment of an international office today the PCA has offices in Argentina Austria macius Singapore and Vietnam I'm pleased

to announce that discussions regarding the opening of a PCA office in India have progressed I have personally witnessed how Indian lawyers can be very firm and tough I'm confident that any remaining differences will be resolved and that the PCA will be able to establish a permanent presence in India soon as I said before this occasion is to commemorate the rich Legacy of both of our institutions at this point it is fitting to command the the Supreme Court of India for its significant strides in Enhancing accessibility it is truly an honor for the PCA to organize

this event in partnership with an institution that shares our deep commitment to ensuring accessibility to Justice I'm also delighted to contribute to ongoing tradition of the PCA India conferences these conferences have served and continue to serve as a valuable platform for a meaningful dialogue I look forward to the debate and discussion at the Upcoming sessions thank [Applause] you thank you Dr Chaple for your remarks now Mr attorney general for India R wenat Rani will make a statement in connection to the virtual launch of PCA India office situated at VK Krishna Menan ban additionally I would

also like to call Mr damur RI secretary Ministry of external Affairs on the dice please come as a very special form of enhan Cooperation between India and PCA and thanks to the vigorous support and encouragement given by the ministry of external Affairs the minister and the secretary present here and noting that the government of India and PC have jointly agreed on the location of the office for PCA we are happy to announce the launch of the same and his construction I invite The Honorable the Chief Justice to do the Launch and of course before that

the Secretary General PCA will probably like to make a statement like to let me just briefly uh thank uh and express my gratefulness to uh the government of India who decided to offer the venue for the office and hearing space it has been a long way to come to this point it will probably be a still long way uh that we need to go before the office is Operational uh but we think together that this moment should be celebrated this m Stone must be marked uh we could we could lay down a Cornerstone but the

building already exists so it's out of the question it just need to be completely renovated and refurbished and to my great joy and thanks to the person personal commitment of these two honorable distinguish gentlemen Mr Davi and attorney general Venkataramani that uh the government has recently to decided to uh I would say invest money in this very very good CA and to build or or to make available space with the objective of establishing the PCA India office and I'm happy that uh we have come to this place and this decision has been made and I

happy that we also are here to celebrate this moment I was thinking what would happen if we decided to go to The construction site and to see how it work starts in this pouring rain so I think it's only one appropriate way of marking this and do it virtually so I think this very apicius moment wait is awaiting the honorable chief justice and we will be waiting for you [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] good [Applause] now I'll kindly request honorable Chief Justice of India Justice DY chandrachur for the address Miss Anna Jin Brett Secretary of anal

Mr Marson Chapel the Secretary General of the Perman Court of arbitration very distinguished sister Justice Hindu motra former judge of the Supreme Court of India and member of the permanent Court of arbitration Justice sanjie Khna judge of the Supreme Court of India my sister and brother judges from the Supreme Court chief justices of the high court high court judges Mr R wenat trani attorney general for India Mr kab Cil president of the Supreme Court Bar Association president of the Supreme Court Advocates and record Association all the office bearers all the distinguished judges of the high

court and members of the global Arbitration Community who have assembled here this evening uh this conference as we've heard from different speakers marks a significant milestone for two towering institutions the Supreme Court of India and the permanent Court of arbitration at our birth the permanent Court of arbitration was getting into her Middle Ages at 125 you have to reinvent your C and the cells have to Regenerate I think we are following in close tandem in the Supreme Court we are regenerating and Reinventing ourselves whether it's in terms of access to Justice or in terms of

the adoption of technology or the creation of new infrastructure for our court as a supreme court celebrates 75 years of its establishment and the permanent Court of arbitration celebrates its 125th anniversary we couldn't have had a Better occasion to do something together which is the launch of the PCA office in India well time has tempered both our institutions testing their metal from time to time with both institutions Pro proving their enduring commitment to the rule of law the PCA has organized five events in India including one capacity building training program organized in collaboration with the

ministry of external Affairs I'd like to take this Opportunity to thank the mea and its secretary uh Mr damur Ravi who has really been very personally involved in this whole movement of training and evolution I've had the distinct privilege of being a part of these events but today's Milestone conference marks a palpable sense of void Mr fali nariman an eminent senior Council and a DNE of the global arbitration Community passed away in February this year not only has the Indian legal Community suffered the profound loss of a beloved lawyer jurist and Mentor but the global

arbitration Community too has lost a towering spirit and figure Mr nariman was the ultimate multi-hyphenate if I may call that call him so he was the ultimate multi-hyphenate of the PCA as a council appointing authority and passionate advocate for its Outreach efforts in India notably Mr nurman played a key Role as Council in the PCA admin minister at Indus Waters kishin ganga arbitration between India and Pakistan this case is truly heralded as a master class in using arbitration to resolve even the most sensitive and contentious disputes between nations with delicate relationships there's nothing as delicate

as the sharing of waters Mr nariman was also the Chief Architect of the Outreach efforts by the PCA and independent organizations such As the inter International Council for commercial arbitration in India he served as a president of the ICA between 1994 and 2002 Mr nariman is often credited with activating the host country agreement between PCA and India by spearheading the organization of the PCA India conferences in fact the vision to host an event celebrating the 125 years of the PCA was conceived by and championed with Mr nariman at the Helm today we are Realizing his

shared dream though unfortunately without his physical presence until the night before Mr naran's passing he was grappling with arbitration law and working on settling a draft written submission for a constitution bench Hearing in the Supreme Court on the subject coincident this is a case about arbitrator bias which the Supreme Court reserved for judgment just a couple of Weeks ago throughout his life Mr nariman spoke with a cander that was as refreshing as it was terrifying who else could make you laugh while simultaneously pinning you to the wall with a piercing question I vividly recalled his

address at the ancal south Asia Conference held around the same time last year in his characteristic style he fired off a series of piercing questions that the Indian arbitration Community Continues to Grapple with and find answers to in many ways this conference is an attempt to pay homage to Mr nariman by doing what would have brought him the greatest joy relentlessly pursuing answers to the tough questions of our times and fearlessly asking new ones the theme of this conference International arbitration and rule of law is particularly significant the arbitration Community Across the world often emphasizes

the importance of commercial efficiency and ease of business but these values are inextricably linked to a deep respect for the rule of law put simply the rule of law Heralds better economic and Commercial outcomes respect for the rule of law promotes fairness stability and predictability this in turn creates a conducive environment for economic growth as Investors thrive in a system where rights are protected contracts are enforced and disputes are resolved efficiently a strong rule of law framework also encourages foreign investment promotes trade and enhances the nation's Global competitiveness ultimately driving sustainable Economic Development and improving

living standards the rule of law shares a symbiotic relationship with the creation of an Environment which Fosters economic stability and growth rule of law principles are in other words the virtual semiconductors of our digital era the time has come for India to take the lead in fostering a culture of international arbitration providing a Level Playing Field for dispute resolution Beyond domestic courts and not without Reason the IMF has predicted a 7% growth in GDP for India for 2024 25 making us rank rank at the top virtual top of the ladder the World Bank has followed

suit gross foreign direct investment inflows ranged at about us 71.4 billion in 2023 and about us71 billion in financial year 2024 there has generally been a decline in global FDI so the net FDI inflows which stood at $42 billion in financial year 2023 dipped to$ 26.5 billion in 2024 according to our department of economic Affairs India's overseas direct investment ODI stood at $ 33.4 five billion in FY 2023 us do 51.6 billion in FY 2022 and US Dollars .71 billion in 2021 between April and June this year India's ODI stood at about us9 billion So

these figures are now a clear indicator that India is not just an importer of capital but we are exporters of capital we to do today do not stand on the cusp of a country which is fearful of the inroads of foreign direct investment or for that matter of human capital from abroad into India because we are net exporters of capital both human and economic and that's why I said the time Has come for India to take the lead in fostering a culture of international arbitration by establishing a robust institutional framework India can Champion the growth

of arbitration in the global South promoting a fair efficient and reliable means of resolving commercial disputes I'm delighted that PCA is honoring its Affinity with the Indian legal system by establishing a regional office in New Delhi under the host Country agreement the office located right across from from the Supreme Court of India is symbolic of the common goals of both our institutions to encourage arbitration and promote the rule of law ultimately contributing to the growth of international trade and investment in our region I'm certain that this development will be instrumental in recognizing India as an

arbitration friendly jurisdiction in South Asia and would allow parties in dispute located In on near India to take full advantage of the flexibility and efficiency y of the PCA administered framework since the last PCA conference in 2020 India has made several strides towards embracing this role of becoming a global arbitration Hub I would like to take this opportunity to share some of these successes with the audience particularly from overseas a prerequisite for achieving Commercial efficiency and upholding the rule of law is certainty in a landmark decision Cox and Kings versus sap India limited a five

judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court conclusively resolved the ambiguity surrounding the group of companies Doctrine in the Indian context putting to rest conflicting interpretations and establishing clear principles of law the law in India on this point is now consistent with International practice Indian law mandates that certain documents be stamped indicating that the necessary Duty has been paid to the Indian Revenue Authority in December last year a seven judge bench of the Supreme Court of India settled a question about the enforceability of an arbitration clause in an unstamped agreement initially a bench of five judges

of our court in NN Global Mercantile private limited versus Indo unique flame limited had held that an arbitration Clause contained in an unstamped agreement cannot be enforced and a referral Court May prevent the initiation of arbitration until the underlying contract is validly stamped quite understandably there was a ferar in the investment Community the Supreme Court was quick to ca correct and a bench of seven judges upheld the principles of severability and the Primacy of arbitral autonomy the court Advocated for a hands-off approach by referal courts and held that the court is only required to examine

the existence of arbitration agreements leaving it to the arbitral tribunal to rule on jurisdiction further we held that the issue of an insufficiently stamped instrument is not fatal to the arbitration agreement and can be dealt with by the arbitral tribunal in accordance with the doctrine of Severability not only jurisprudentially but even while appointing arbitrators the Supreme Court has made a significant shift Beyond solely appointing retired judges to conduct International commercial arbitrations as Mr fali nariman aptly put it we are dispelling the myth that only retired judges make good arbitrators this Evolution acknowledges the wealth of

talent among young Advocates and arbitration practitioners Including a growing number of women members of the bar today I've been told by my courtmaster just this afternoon that among the 45 appointments which I have made in the last few months of arbitrators under Section 11 over 23 have been from the bar of the of the Court the rest being from former judges if I'm being candid my initial Instinct in the bench was to appoint a retired judge simply because that is the way we have always done it a Habit rooted in familiarity but I now find

myself taking a moment to pause and tap into India's burgeoning pool of skilled arbitration lawyers with the expertise Knowledge and Skills to sellers arbitrators ultimately it's also a question of supply and demand and there's so much of work being generated that there is enough for people particularly young women lawyers to actors arbitrators completely displacing The gender imbalance in the world of arbitration in fact we are taking a step forward to not only dispel the myth that only retired judges make good arbitrators which of course they do I hope indu will be pacified right also brother

asogi who is in the audience but to further experiment with the proposition that good arbitrators also make good judges and how is that as arbitration gra traction as a preferred mode of dispute Resolution related litigation is increasing before the courts requiring judges with specialized expertise members of the bar with with extensive experience in conducting arbitrations and appearing in arbitration related cases have been appointed as judges of the high courts in the last few years similarly practitioners with significant experience in international arbitration are increasingly being designated as Senior Advocates by the Supreme Court of India and

by the high courts on the legislative side as well the parliament has initiated efforts to revamp the arbitration and conciliation Act of 1996 to this end the ministry of Law and Justice is EST established a committee to review the effectiveness of the act and suggest amendments the committee has submitted its report which is now being acted upon by the ministry Paving the way for potential Reform in the midst of this unprecedented enthusiasm for arbitration in India this is an opportune moment to convene the PCA Supreme Court of India conference there was a time when we

were fearful of investor State arbitration and the reason for that was very simple we lacked the professionalization which was required to deal with interest with with investment disputes between states and between investors and states that environment has changed with a growing Professionalization of arbitration in India the government of India has been a very engaging partner in ensuring that we train our diplomats not just in India but overseas to bring a greater focus on the fre framework in terms of human resource development needed for pitchforking India as one of the leading participants in the international dispute

resolution process so the fears of white Industries and you know the horrors of the early uh disputes have Now giving way to increasing success by India in the international dispute resolution framework and nothing success succeeds the success just as failures provid the occasional blip or setback I'm hopeful that over the next two days we will engage in candid and constructive discussion tackling pressing questions headon with a shared goal of strengthening the international arbitration Ecosystem I look forward to the ideas and perspectives that will emerge both in the formal sessions and in the informal conversations that

will take place throughout this conference we have very distinguished judges of the high courts experts on Commercial arbitration who have spared time to come here from different High courts to participate in this conference because the future really belongs to them they are the people who are going to really provide Mentorship as judges of the high courts and later of the Supreme Court in the field of arbitration and it is in that hope that we've had this Talent of people from the bar and From the Bench to come and work with us shoulder-to-shoulder in making this

conference a success I have great pleasure in welcoming everyone as part of this audience and I hope our International guests have an engaging period uh in in Delhi and in the Supreme Court over the next couple of days thank you very much [Applause] thank you justice chandur for giving insightful perspective and I extend my gratitude to all the speakers for their speeches and setting the tone for further discussions over the next two days over the next two days the working sessions will dive deeply into three pivotal areas of arbitration commercial arbitration Investor estate arbitration and

state tostate arbitration in our first day of the working sessions discussions will re around challenges and solutions associated with each of these types of arbitration as well as issues related to post award stage additionally we will dwell into India's position and involvement in these arbitration regimes in the second day of working sessions our Focus will be on investment arbitration regime the speakers will Delve into the key investment treaty Provisions essential Pro procedural steps and the post award stage providing an in-depth analysis of each aspect thank you all for joining the inaugural program tomorrow the working

sessions will start at 10: a.m. I hope to see you all there thank you so much now I kindly request all of you to join us for the HEI thank [Applause] you for Hello everyone welcome to another episode of coach today by live law your one One Step destination for the latest and fastest legal updates I am your host urishi Chan bringing you day-to-day happenings Landmark judgments e e e e e e