What is Section 8 of Arbitration and Conciliation Act?

Section 8. Power to refer parties to arbitration where there is an Arbitration agreement

[(1) A judicial authority, before which an action is brought in a matter which is the subject of an arbitration agreement shall, if a party to the arbitration agreement or any person claiming through or under him, so applies not later than the date of submitting his first statement on the substance of the dispute, then, notwithstanding any judgment, decree or order of the Supreme Court or any Court, refer the parties to arbitration unless it finds that prima facie no valid arbitration agreement exists.]

(2) The application referred to in sub-section (1) shall not be entertained unless it is accompanied by the original arbitration agreement or a duly certified copy thereof.

[Provided that where the original arbitration agreement or a certified copy thereof is not available with the party applying for reference to arbitration under sub-section (1), and the said agreement or certified copy is retained by the other party to that agreement, then, the party so applying shall file such application along with a copy of the arbitration agreement and a petition praying the Court to call upon the other party to produce the original arbitration agreement or its duly certified copy before that Court.]

(3) Notwithstanding that an application has been made under sub-section (1) and that the issue is pending before the judicial authority, an arbitration may be commenced or continued and an arbitral award made.

Scope of Section 8 of Arbitration and Conciliation Act

Section 8 of the 1996 Act denotes a provision which puts a limit to judicial intervention in the process of arbitration. However, the judiciary has drawn exception to the extent of intervention on the basis of the arbitrability of the subject matter and the competence of the arbitral tribunal to deal with it.

The scope of Section 8 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 and the extent of judicial intervention on its invocation have been the subject-matter of a series of pronouncements of the Supreme Court and various High Courts.

Section 8 of the 1996 Act mandates that a judicial authority before whom an action is brought, which is the subject of an arbitration agreement between the parties, shall refer the parties to arbitration.