Retirement Of Sole Arbitrator Appointed By Designation Not A Valid Ground To Terminate Mandate

In a recent judgment in M/s Laxmi Continental Construction Co. v. State of U.P. and Anr. the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India held that the mandate of a sole arbitrator who was appointed by designation could not be terminated solely on ground of their retirement. In this case, we navigate through the facts and findings of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the aforesaid judgment.

Brief facts

A contract for certain works was entered into between the appellant and the respondents vide an agreement dated 6 February 1988 (Agreement). During the contract work, various disputes arose amongst the parties. The Agreement in its arbitration clause provided that the disputes shall be resolved by the government officers of the rank of superintending engineer or higher, who were not connected with the work under the Agreement. Accordingly, a sole arbitrator was appointed who was the Chief Engineer at the relevant point in time. The claimant filed its claim while the respondents filed