In Brief
Magic Eye Developers challenged a Delhi High Court order referring a commercial dispute to arbitration despite arguing that the core dispute was governed by a contract without an arbitration clause. The Supreme Court held that the High Court prematurely referred the matter without conclusively deciding whether a valid arbitration agreement existed. The Court clarified that under the Arbitration Act's Section 11(6A), referral courts must definitively establish the existence and validity of an arbitration agreement before ordering arbitration—this threshold determination cannot be deferred to the Arbitral Tribunal. The case was remitted to the High Court to definitively resolve the agreement issue on its merits.
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