Arbitration And Conciliation (Amendment) Ordinance 2020 – Unconditional Stay Of An Award

The President of India has promulgated the Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Ordinance 2020, notified on 4 November 2020 ('Ordinance'), through which certain provisions of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996 ('Arbitration Act') have been amended. The key highlights of the Ordinance are as follows:

Amendment to §36 of the Arbitration Act

§36 of the Arbitration Act allows a party challenging an arbitral award to obtain a stay on the operation of such an award pending its challenge. A Court may grant a stay "subject to such conditions as it deems fit" and "for reasons to be recorded in writing". In practice, typically, a stay of an award for monies is made subject to a cash deposit of the entirety or a portion of the awarded sums.