Dentons Link Legal is pleased to share that our team has secured a favourable order in a Section 11 Petition filed on behalf of JSW Severfield Structures Ltd. ("JSSL") before the Hon’ble Mr. Justice Somasekhar Sundaresan of the Bombay High Court.
The Court, while rejecting the Respondent’s preliminary objections, held that the arbitration agreement enshrined within the original purchase orders, continues to remain operative, notwithstanding the subsequent settlement agreement which did not incorporate an arbitration clause. The Court clarified that although a settlement agreement ordinarily supersedes antecedent contractual terms, this principle is not absolute and must be assessed in light of the parties’ intention.
While placing reliance on established precedents, the Hon’ble High Court reaffirmed that an arbitration clause shall survive unless the parties unequivocally intend to extinguish it, and further, that such a clause stands revived where the settlement does not fructify. In view of these findings, the Court proceeded to appoint a Sole Arbitrator.
The order was attained by the team of lawyers comprising Mr. Ravi Varma (Senior Partner) and Mr. Ayush Srivastava (Senior Associate).