Gemini Bay Transcription Pvt. Ltd vs Integrated Sales Service Ltd. & Anr

Bench: 2 — R.F. Nariman

In Brief

This case deals with enforcement of a foreign arbitral award made in Kansas City, USA under a representation agreement. The core issue was whether non-signatories (Arun Dev Upadhyaya, Gemini Bay entities) could be bound by the award when only the original contracting companies signed the arbitration agreement. The Supreme Court held that Section 46 of the Arbitration Act binds "persons" (not merely signatories) to foreign awards. A non-signatory can be bound through alter ego doctrine if it controlled corporate forms to perpetrate wrongs. The Court narrowly construed Section 48 grounds for resisting enforcement and rejected attempts to use them for merits review. It upheld damages based on reasonable certainty rather than mathematical proof.

The lawyer headnote and full judgment text are available to registered users.

Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 Foreign Awards Recognition and Enforcement Non-Signatories Alter Ego Doctrine Arbitrability Scope of Arbitration Clause Tort Claims Damages in Arbitration New York Convention

Read the full judgment & headnote. It's free.

Register to read the complete Supreme Court judgment text and the headnote, and to search 1 lakh+ Supreme Court judgments by meaning. It is a free service.