PARTY AUTONOMY IN ARBITRATION (India)

Introduction
In April 2021, the Supreme Court of India, in a landmark judgement rendered in PASL Wind Solutions Private Limited v. GE Power Conversion India Private Limited, has put to rest an often debated question regarding choice of seat of arbitration between two Indian parties and upheld the autonomy of Indian parties to choose a seat of arbitration outside India. Whilst at first go this decision may seem relevant only to Indian parties, the judgment has far reaching effects on the ability of Indian subsidiaries and joint venture partners of foreign companies to choose a neutral foreign seat of arbitration, such as Singapore or London when executing contracts with other Indian parties and not be compelled to choose India as a seat of arbitration, which entailed Indian courts having supervisory jurisdiction and the award being subject to challenge in India.

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