IMPEDIMENTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS IN ENFORCEMENT OF ARBITRAL AWARDS

Abstract

Arbitration is an alternative dispute resolution mechanism, wherein a dispute is resolved by appointing a mutually decided person as an arbitrator who gives out a decision which binding on both the parties. It is a mechanism, where a dispute is resolved without going to the court.  Black’s Law dictionary has given the definition of arbitration as ‘a method of dispute resolution involving one or more neutral third parties, who are agreed by the disputing parties and whose decision is binding’. This binding decision given by the appointed arbitrator is known as an Arbitral Award.  In India, the governing law regarding issues related to arbitration is The Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 as amended by The Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Act, 2015 which is governed by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (referred to as UNCITRAL) Model Law.  UNCITRAL law is a model arbitration law followed by all the signatory countries of New Your Convention and Geneva Convention.  A jurisdiction’s credibility as an arbitration friendly one rests primarily on the efficiency and efficacy of its award enforcement regime. Only when an arbitral award is sufficiently enforced can it be possible for the claimant to recover the damages awarded.

The enforcement of such awards establishes the rights and liabilities of the parties involved in a dispute. An award stands at the same footing as a decree of a court, whether it has passed into a decree or not and therefore it is binding upon the parties. However, a lot of times to secure an award is not the last step as there arise a lot of impediments in the enforcement of such awards.