Chief Justice of India Surya Kant has called for a stronger institutional arbitration and Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) framework to support the commercial ambitions of the India-UK free trade agreement.
Addressing the Indian Council of Arbitration’s 4th International Conference on “Arbitrating Indo-UK Commercial Disputes” in London, Justice Kant said the India-UK economic partnership needs dispute resolution systems that can turn commercial confidence into day-to-day practice.
“We need to strengthen the institutional arbitration that are required to ensure that party autonomy remains a guarantee of procedural fairness rather than a source of procedural contestation,” Justice Surya Kant said.
Referring to the free trade agreement concluded between India and the United Kingdom, he said it is expected to increase bilateral trade between the two nations by an estimated USD 34 billion a year in the near future.
“But ambitions are realized in contracts, not in communiqués. The Indo-UK economic partnership cannot be strengthened by trade agreements, tariff schedules, and investment announcements alone. It also needs an ADR architecture that converts commercial confidence into day-to-day practice,” Justice Surya Kant said on June 5.
Justice Kant said the next phase of Indo-UK trade will be driven not only by large conglomerates, but also by pharmaceutical suppliers, fintech firms, clean energy businesses, digital platforms, and mid-market manufacturers on both sides.
He warned that dispute resolution systems must work for smaller and mid-sized businesses as well. “If our ADR mechanisms work only for disputes large enough to justify high fee or large legal teams, that might fail the very commercial partnership that are meant to support,” he said, adding, “We must, therefore, introspect how to ensure equal level playing field for all.”
Justice Kant also called for a joint Indo-UK arbitrator accreditation and cross-training programme to create a shared pool of practitioners familiar with both legal and commercial ecosystems.
For disputes involving technology licensing, fintech partnerships and similar business arrangements, he suggested a faster protocol built around capped fees, documentary procedure, online hearings where suitable, a short mediation window and a defined timetable for final determination.
The Chief Justice also made a case for connecting arbitration with mediation through properly designed hybrid protocols. He said many Indo-UK disputes will arise within continuing relationships, including joint ventures, distribution networks, technology partnerships and infrastructure contracts, where preserving the commercial relationship can be as important as deciding the dispute.
He said India’s Mediation Act 2023 and the growing mediation culture in the UK provide a foundation for such frameworks. “We need to build protocols that are properly safeguarded for confidentiality and impartiality,” he added.
Rt. Hon. Sir Geoffrey Vos, Master of the Rolls and Head of Civil Justice of England and Wales, spoke about the evolving role of technology and artificial intelligence in dispute resolution and highlighted the importance of maintaining trust, fairness and efficiency within legal systems.
Kartik Pande, Deputy High Commissioner of India to the United Kingdom, said the Indian Government remains fully committed to promoting ADR for faster resolution of disputes.
Brett Dixon, Vice President of The Law Society of England and Wales, emphasised the importance of legal cooperation, institutional engagement and effective dispute resolution mechanisms in strengthening business confidence and commercial partnerships.
Dr. NG Khaitan, President of ICA and Senior Partner at Khaitan & Co, said people have reposed trust and confidence in India, which he described as one of the safest places to do business. He also stressed the need to promote arbitration to resolve commercial disputes more quickly.
Arun Chawla, Director General of ICA, said arbitration has become a silent infrastructure of growth and emphasised that both India and the UK are investing in strengthening the arbitration system.
The Indian Council of Arbitration, established in 1965 by the Government of India and FICCI, is India’s premier arbitral institution for promoting arbitration, conciliation, mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution. ICA has built relationships with more than 50 arbitral institutions and international organisations worldwide.
Source: Press release shared by Lumen Media on behalf of the Indian Council of Arbitration (ICA).
