Legislative reform, judicial discipline worked in tandem in past decade: CJI Surya Kant

Chandigarh, Mar 7 (PTI) Legislative reform and judicial discipline have worked in tandem over the past decade, with courts exercising minimal interventions while being vigilant where natural justice demands scrutiny, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said here on Saturday.

He noted that amendments to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act have tightened timelines, strengthened neutrality standards and clarified the contours of judicial oversight.

"That balance is not cosmetic. Arbitration cannot thrive without autonomy. But autonomy, if left unmoored, risks arbitrariness. The task has therefore been to allow the arbitral process some room to breathe, while ensuring that its legitimacy remains intact," the CJI said.

He was delivering his keynote address on 'India's Cross-Border Disputes Services: 2026-2030 Outlook for Litigation, Mediation, & Arbitration' after inaugurating the Chandigarh International Arbitration Centre (CIAC) at the first edition of India International Disputes Week (IIDW) 2026.

"We are not merely marking a beginning. We are assuming a responsibility — to ensure that India is not only a fast-growing economy, but a reliable jurisdiction; not only a participant in global commerce, but a guardian of its disputes," he said about the inauguration.

He termed the launch of the centre "an assertion that India is ready to think seriously about the next phase of its Dispute Resolution Journey." The CJI said the question is not whether India can enact modern legislation or whether it can deliver principled judgments, whether our dispute resolution institutions inspire sustained confidence across borders.

"Of course, such confidence cannot be declared with a sweeping statement," he said.

"It must be earned. Earned through consistency, through neutrality, through procedural discipline, and through institutional performance over time," he said.

Kant recalled a time when India's arbitration regime was approached with caution in international circles, and told the gathering the time when questions were raised about delay, intervention and unpredictability.

"As I had the occasion to flag issues recently while inaugurating the Gujarat High Court Arbitration Centre, the challenges we face exist on multiple fronts. These include building trust for institutional arbitration, enhancing the capacity of Arbitration Centres and the need for greater professionalism," he said.

The CJI said that credibility is not measured by the elegance of a statute, but by the confidence it inspires. Investors and commercial actors look at lived practice, rather than merely legislative text, he averred.

He said such actors ask whether arbitral awards are enforced predictably, whether appointments of arbitrators are neutral, whether timelines are respected, and whether courts exercise restraint with consistency.

"It is in this context that the Chandigarh International Arbitration Centre assumes significance. CIAC must not become just another administrative fixture. It must stand for neutrality that is beyond doubt, efficiency that is beyond promise, and procedural integrity that is beyond reproach," the CJI said.

"If it does so, it will contribute to India's standing as a dependable seat of international arbitration," he said. He went on to pay homage to the City Beautiful.

"Chandigarh itself is no ordinary backdrop. It is a city conceived with deliberation, designed, planned, and structured with care … It stands as a reminder that institutions do not arise by accident; they are imagined, built, and sustained with foresight," he said.

The CJI said arbitration is only one pillar of a modern dispute resolution architecture, with mediation fast assuming a role.

"In cross-border disputes, particularly, mediation offers something where arbitration invariably fails preservation of relationship. Where parties expect to continue doing business together, a mediated settlement avoids the rupture that even a well-reasoned award may leave behind... If I say it differently, mediation allows resolution without residue," he said.

The inaugural ceremony was attended by several distinguished members of the judiciary, including Supreme Court judges Justice Rajesh Bindal, Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice P K Mishra.

Also present were Justice Sheel Nagu, Chief Justice of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana, Justice G S Sandhawalia, Chief Justice of the High Court of Himachal Pradesh, and Attorney General for India R Venkataramani. PTI SUN VSD VN VN