UK-supported report on Commercial Dispute Resolution in South India
The UK-supported project studied issues, challenges and provided policy recommendations and training of CDR officers in South India.
This week, British Deputy High Commissioner to India Dr Alexander Evans will launch a report on assessment of Commercial Dispute Resolution (CDR) in South India as part of a UK-funded project to address the need for effective CDR.
The project was implemented by Centre for Public Policy Research, Kochi with the support of Tamil Chamber of Commerce, Bangalore Chamber of Industry & Commerce and training experts from Field Court Chambers, UK covering Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. It has opened up possibilities to discuss potential partnerships between UK and Tamil Nadu in ease of doing business.
Ahead of the event, British Deputy High Commissioner to India Dr Alexander Evans said:
The launch of this report on Commercial Dispute Resolution is a beginning of our growing relationship with the Government of Tamil Nadu related to ease of doing business. I am pleased that the project we supported has already attempted to address the challenges of capacity building including recommending establishing dispute resolution centres.
Further information
Please attend/send your representative/photo journalist to the event. Please find the details below:
| Time | 1630 hrs |
| Date | Tuesday, 20 June 2017 |
| Venue | Assocham, International Law Centre, 61-63, Dr. Radhakrishnan Salai, Mylapore, Chennai 600 004 |
The event is being organised by Associated Chambers of Commerce of India (ASSOCHAM) and the Centre for Public Policy Research, and supported by the British Deputy High Commission Chennai. Legal officers, HR professionals, entrepreneurs, law firms, Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) practitioners from Tamil Nadu are expected to attend.
Early in 2017, the British Deputy High Commission Chennai held a CDR skills workshop for senior commercial dispute resolution officers. This project was implemented by the Centre for Public Policy Research, Kochi and was part of a series of workshops in Bengaluru, Chennai and Kochi covering mediation and negotiation techniques, dealing with commercial deadlock, B2B disagreements, mock sessions on commercial settlements, contract and drafting settlement agreements.
The objective of this workshop was to support the Government of India’s ambition to establish and promote institutional international arbitration centres across the country, by upscaling a cadre of officers at the state level. Judicial officers, Legal officers, ADR practitioners, Chartered Accountants and entrepreneurs from Tamil Nadu attended the workshop.
CDR as part of the ADR in India is evolving. This is owing to lack of sufficiently trained personnel to tackle complex issues involving disputes of commercial nature, in addition to delays in resolution, cost involved, lack of state level arbitration/mediation centres, lack of adoption of Dispute Resolution Rules etc. An improved, wider CDR skill base can improve investments in the country and the operation of various companies in India or foreign companies with business relations in India. According to estimates, commercial disputes which end up in various courts in India take an average of 4-6 years for final settlement and companies are considered to demarcate around 10-15% for legal costs which reflect the low rank of India for ‘Enforcing Contracts’ at 180 in the 2016 World Bank Doing Business Rankings.
The signing of an memorandum of understanding (MoU) in November 2016 between the UK and India on ease of doing business will harness UK expertise to support India’s efforts to climb the World Bank Ease of Doing Business Ratings.
Media
For media queries, please contact:
Anita Mawdsley,
Press & Public Affairs Officer,
British Deputy High Commission Chennai
Mob: +91-96001-99956
Mail to: Anita Mawdsley
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