Interim Relief in Arbitration: Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996 and Orders 38 & 39 of the CPC

Interim relief is a critical component of an effective arbitration process because an award is of little value if the assets to support it are dissipated. Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 authorises courts to grant relief, but does not specify the criteria for granting relief. Orders 38 and 39 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 have therefore posed difficulty for courts as to whether the technical aspects of the CPC apply to a Section 9 court or only the underlying principles of the CPC. This paper takes up this question throughout a doctrinal study and analysis of statutory provisions and judicial decisions such as Sundaram Finance, Adhunik Steels, ArcelorMittal v Essar Bulk Terminal, Essar House and Amazon v Future Retail. It also takes into account the limitation in Section 9(3) and the impact of emergency arbitration on court proceedings. The paper contends that Indian courts have shifted towards adopting a principles-based approach, but the ambiguity in both the application and the nature of the overlapping provisions between Sections 9 and 17 needs to be clarified by the courts and, to a limited extent, by statute.