In Brief

A British Virgin Islands company sought appointment of a sole arbitrator to decide disputes arising from three service and lease agreements with a Singapore company. The respondent had proposed consolidating the disputes but later challenged the arbitration on grounds that some agreements were unstamped under the Maharashtra Stamp Act. The Supreme Court held that arbitration agreements are separate from underlying contracts and are enforceable despite non-payment of stamp duty on the substantive contract—a curable defect only. Since the respondent itself had proposed consolidation and agreed to a sole arbitrator, it could not later deny enforcement. The Court appointed a retired High Court judge as sole arbitrator, treating the consolidated disputes as a single arbitration.

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