Arbitration is holding firm grounds in todays modern world as an alternative dispute resolution mechanism. As a process and concept, arbitration is well embedded in commercial practices and social life too. The process of arbitration dates back to the period of Mahabharat when Lord Krishna treind to re-concilate twixt the Pandavs and the Kauravs.

Further, it gain prominence on the pretext of reducing the burden on the already over-burdened courts. Arbitration and reconciliation aims to try and resolve dispute twixt two parties by trying to resolve the issue amicably.

But is arbitration a privatisation of the traditional litigative system or outsourcing of the judicial powers??

Arbitration may offer definite advantages that traditional litigation may not be able to provide as the courts need to follow a strict and fixed well defined procedures. Arbitration is generally informal and informal and it need not follow the strict provisions of Evidence Act and Code of Civil Procedure. Now, since an arbitrator is not henched by an formulated rules, he has to act solely by the principles of justice and equlity, one might argue that this is a classic case of privatisation of legal and judicial system.

But then arbitration enables one to choose the arbitrator tribunal taking into consideration the field and complexity of the dispute. Also, it helps to save a huge amount of time. It should be emphasised here that the sucess of the institution of arbitration depends upon the confidence the institution is able to generate in the minds of the people at large. It is needless to say that such confidence depends on the infallible character, credibility and uprightedness of the arbitrators.

It seems that there is no gain saying that result of arbitration totaly depends upon the personality of the arbitrator. Be that as it may, the relevance and its importance has to be emphasised. It should further be appriciated that the alternative dispute resolution mechanism should not be termed as privatisation of traditional litigative system or outsourcing of judicial powers as it is projected at times.

(With inputs from Newletters from Indian Council of Arbitration.)

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