Team Blitz India
NEW DELHI: A Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court on December 6 held that an arbitration agreement can bind non-signatories as per the ‘group of companies’ doctrine.
“The ‘group of companies’ doctrine must be retained in the Indian arbitration jurisprudence considering its utility in determining the intention of the parties in the context of complex transactions involving multiple parties and multiple agreements,” the Court observed.
A bench comprising CJI DY Chandrachud, Justices Hrishikesh Roy,PS Narasimha, JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra delivered the verdict.
The Court held that it is not necessary that only persons who are signatories to the arbitration agreement will be bound by the arbitration agreement.
