Arbitration Law May (2026) Arbitrtion Law Updates And Judgments

1. Section 11 Jurisdiction restricted to prima facie existenceof Arbitration Agreement, leaving Limitation and merit-based objections to the Arbitral Tribunal¹

Impacted stakeholders- Public sector contracting authorities and Municipal bodies, Arbitrators and Arbitral Tribunals.

The Delhi High Court adjudicated a petition onthis issue seeking a transfer order in favour of him to appoint an arbitrator in the frame of Section 11 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, in relation to the disputes raised in the context of a public works contract. The respondent objected to the reference, arguing it was premature and that the claims were barred by limitation. The Court ruled that the objections are for the arbitral tribunal to determine, and not for the referral court to rule on. In reiterating the finding of the Supreme Court in SBI General Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Krish Spinning, the Court noted that its judicial oversight during the Section 11 stage is limited to determining