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DR.VEDULA GOPINATH (ADVOCATE AND CORPORAE ADVISOR)     09 March 2015

Summning a witness by arbitrator

dear learned readers


    I wish to seek  thoughts on Arbitration proceedings issue.

          Can Arbitrator summon a witness of claimant at the request of Respondent

            Under Section 19 of Arbitration Act.?  Is shere any case law of SC

    DR VEDULA AGOPINATH ADVOCATE AND ARBITRATOR   vgnath@gmail.com



Learning

 3 Replies


(Guest)

Dear more-learned-in-LAw, Sir, Namasthae!                                                                                                            Iam not at all surprised by your query, having been unwilling initiator, more than an year back, of an Arbitration for my Chennai employer, at KolkAthA, due to his almost-blind-and-ununderstandable belief that something miraculous like that which happened in Shylock vs. Antony case in the - Merchant of Venice - Italian, real/fictional LAw-story, may happen to him, placed as he is in an unenviable position like Antony.                                                                                                                                                                                     But having initiated this costly process for him, I tried my best to use all my ideAs of Sath-nAthana Dharm(nothing very religious about it, in my opinion; It is simple truth-based LAw, as wAs practised by a BArrister who failed in BhArath but turned out to be an excellent informal Arbitrator n South AfricA, I mean our MahAthmA GAndhi).  But alas, the young Arbitrator, in the case Iam now discussing, who has potential to be an MKG, wont have any of my ideAs, and would rAther go through a ridiculous process of Shylock reading out all the correspondance and points in his very letter-based, not spirit-based, interpretation of the smArt terms of agreement,  his company is always able to dictate to vendors like us, to sign at the very beginning of any work for them.                                                         This Shylock-reading has taken more than a dozen hearings over an year, in fAr-away KolkAthA , and next week this fArce may end, to be followed by our side reading out all the counters we placed to them. My ideA of stArting the Arbitration, directly, just with some points on which we could stArt bArgaining, instead of reading over a Ton of correspondance, never materialised. My employer is not feeling the pinch still, since we only pay till now the stenographer-s fees, and the burden of the Arbitrator-s fees, not billed till now, is an unknown thing.     So, whAt can I advise you? On paper as one who is supposed to foot half the bill of the Aritration, we seem to have a right to say how the Arbitration should proceed and use the costly time, but in reality, the Arbitrator can be worse than our (in)famous Courts, that have no ideA of ever finishing mounting pile of cases. PArtly the blame is on all of us who wont act sensibly.  

T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate (Advocate)     12 March 2015

Dear Gopinath sir, theclause  referred by you reproduced below:

19. Determination of rules of procedure.—
(1) The arbitral tribunal shall not be bound by the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908) or the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (1 of 1872).
(2) Subject to this Part, the parties are free to agree on the procedure to be followed by the arbitral tribunal in conducting its proceedings.
(3) Failing any agreement referred to in sub-section (2), the arbitral tribunal may, subject to this Part, conduct the proceedings in the manner it considers appropriate.
(4) The power of the arbitral tribunal under sub-section (3) includes the power to determine the admissibility, relevance, materiality and weight of any evidence.
 
From the above the sub clause 4 should elicit answer to your query,which if read withsecrio2(6):
(6) Where this Part, except section 28, leaves the parties free to determine a certain issue, that freedom shall include the right of the parties to determine that issue.
Thus  in  my opinion  there is no illegality in it(?)

DR.VEDULA GOPINATH (ADVOCATE AND CORPORAE ADVISOR)     12 March 2015

dear learned colelagues

 

   Thanks for your kind reply and guidance given to me. I am obliged to you.

 

regards

dr vedula gopinath  advocate and arbitrator


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