In Brief
A corporation and a service provider disputed a call center services agreement, which was referred to a three-member arbitral tribunal. The majority awarded in the service provider's favour on 27 April 2018 orally, but the signed copy was delivered only on 19 May 2018 (after the dissenting opinion was received). The corporation filed objections on 10 September 2018. The lower courts dismissed the objections as barred by limitation, computing the 3-month period from the oral announcement. The Supreme Court held that the limitation period for Section 34 objections commences from the date the signed award is delivered to parties, not from the oral pronouncement or draft circulation. Dissenting opinions are not 'arbitral awards' for limitation purposes. The corporation's objections were therefore timely and the matter was remitted for decision on merits.
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