Amendment status not verified — confirm the current text below against the official source.
In section 11 of the principal Act,— (i) in sub-sections (4), (5) and (6), for the words “the Chief Justice or any person or institution designated by him” wherever they occur, the words “the Supreme Court or, as the case may be, the High Court or any person or institution designated by such Court” shall be substituted; (ii) after sub-section (6), the following sub-sections shall be inserted, namely:— “(6A) The Supreme Court or, as the case may be, the High Court, while considering any application under sub-section (4) or sub-section (5) or sub-section (6), shall, notwithstanding any judgment, decree or order of any Court, confine to the examination of the existence of an arbitration agreement. (6B) The designation of any person or institution by the Supreme Court or, as the case may be, the High Court, for the purposes of this section shall not be regarded as a delegation of judicial power by the Supreme Court or the High Court.”; (iii) in sub-section (7), for the words “the Chief Justice or the person or institution designated by him is final”, the words “the Supreme Court or, as the case may be, the High Court or the person or institution designated by such Court is final and no appeal including Letters Patent Appeal shall lie against such decision” shall be substituted; (iv) for sub-section (8), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:— “(8) The Supreme Court or, as the case may be, the High Court or the person or institution designated by such Court, before appointing an arbitrator, shall seek a disclosure in writing from the prospective arbitrator in terms of sub-section (1) of section 12, and have due regard to— (a) any qualifications required for the arbitrator by the agreement of the parties; and (b) the contents of the disclosure and other considerations as are likely to secure the appointment of an independent and impartial arbitrator.”; (v) in sub-section (9), for the words “the Chief Justice of India or the person or institution designated by him”, the words “the Supreme Court or the person or institution designated by that Court” shall be substituted; (vi) for sub-section (10), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:— “(10) The Supreme Court or, as the case may be, the High Court, may make such scheme as the said Court may deem appropriate for dealing with matters entrusted by sub-section (4) or sub-section (5) or sub-section (6), to it.”; (vii) in sub-section (11), for the words “the Chief Justices of different High Courts or their designates, the Chief Justice or his designate to whom the request has been first made”, the words “different High Courts or their designates, the High Court or its designate to whom the request has been first made” shall be substituted; (viii) for sub-section (12), the following sub-section shall be substituted, namely:— ‘(12) (a) Where the matters referred to in sub-sections (4), (5), (6), (7), (8) and sub-section (10) arise in an international commercial arbitration, the reference to the “Supreme Court or, as the case may be, the High Court” in those sub-sections shall be construed as a reference to the “Supreme Court”; and Amendment of section 11. 4 THE GAZETTE OF INDIA EXTRAORDINARY [PART II— (b) where the matters referred to in sub-sections (4), (5), (6), (7), (8) and sub-section (10) arise in any other arbitration, the reference to “the Supreme Court or, as the case may be, the High Court” in those sub-sections shall be construed as a reference to the “High Court” within whose local limits the principal Civil Court referred to in clause (e) of sub-section (1) of section 2 is situate, and where the High Court itself is the Court referred to in that clause, to that High Court.’; (ix) after sub-section (12), the following sub-sections shall be inserted, namely:— “(13) An application made under this section for appointment of an arbitrator or arbitrators shall be disposed of by the Supreme Court or the High Court or the person or institution designated by such Court, as the case may be, as expeditiously as possible and an endeavour shall be made to dispose of the matter within a period of sixty days from the date of service of notice on the opposite party. (14) For the purpose of determination of the fees of the arbitral tribunal and the manner of its payment to the arbitral tribunal, the High Court may frame such rules as may be necessary, after taking into consideration the rates specified in the Fourth Schedule. Explanation.—For the removal of doubts, it is hereby clarified that this sub-section shall not apply to international commercial arbitration and in arbitrations (other than international commercial arbitration) in case where parties have agreed for determination of fees as per the rules of an arbitral institution.’’.