JUPITICE empanelment Rules

Introduction

These Rules govern the empanelment of Arbitrators, Conciliators, and Mediators (hereinafter referred to as "Neutrals") for Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) proceedings.

The empanelment aims to establish a structured and efficient process for onboarding qualified Neutrals to ensure fair, impartial, and effective dispute resolution.

Definitions

Eligibility

1. Eligibility for empanelment as a Neutral with Jupitice Justice Technologies Private Limited ("Jupitice"):

• a. Advocate (within the meaning of the Advocates Act, 1961) having a minimum of ten years of practice experience as an advocate with specialisation in the field of commercial and arbitration laws; or
• b. Chartered accountant (within the meaning of the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949) having a minimum of ten years of practice experience as a chartered accountant specialising in commercial and arbitration laws; or
• c. Cost accountant (within the meaning of the Cost and Works Accountants Act, 1959) having a minimum of ten years of practice experience as a cost accountant specialising in commercial and arbitration laws; or
• d. Company secretary (within the meaning of the Company Secretaries Act, 1980) having a minimum of ten years of practice experience as a company secretary specialising in commercial and arbitration laws; or
• e. has been an Officer of the Indian Legal Service; or
• f. has been an Officer with law degree having minimum ten years of experience in the legal matters in the Government, Autonomous Body, Public Sector Undertaking or at a senior level managerial position in the private sector and where he/she has worked in the private sector; or
• g. has been an Officer having a minimum of ten years of experience as an engineer in the Government, Autonomous Body, Public Sector Undertaking or at a senior level managerial position in the private sector or self-employed; or
• h. has been an Officer having senior level experience of administration in the Central Government or State Government or having experience of senior level management of a Public Sector Undertaking or a Government company or a private company of repute; or
• i. A person having educational qualification at degree level with ten years of experience in a scientific or technical stream in the fields of architecture, telecom, information technology, Intellectual Property Rights, or other specialised areas in the Government, Autonomous Body, Public Sector Undertaking, or a senior level managerial position in a private sector, as the case may be; or
• j. Any person who has been a judge/judicial officer; or
• k. Any foreign national who has considerable experience in Arbitration as assessed by Jupitice.

General Norms

1. The applicant shall be a person of the general reputation of fairness and integrity and must be capable to apply objectivity in arriving at the settlement of disputes;
2. The applicant must be impartial and neutral and avoid entering into any financial business or other relationship that is likely to affect impartiality or might reasonably create an appearance of partiality or bias amongst the parties;
3. The applicant should not be involved in any legal proceeding and must avoid any potential conflict connected with any dispute to be arbitrated by him/her;
4. The applicant should not have been convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude or economic offence;
5. The applicant shall be conversant with the Constitution of India, principles of natural justice, equity, common and customary laws, commercial laws, labour laws, law of torts, making and enforcing the arbitral awards;
6. The applicant should possess a robust understanding of the domestic and international legal system on arbitration and international best practices in regard thereto;
7. The applicant should be able to understand key elements of contractual obligations in civil and commercial disputes and be able to apply legal principles to a situation under dispute and also to apply judicial decisions on a given matter relating to arbitration; and
8. The applicant should be capable of suggesting, recommending or writing a reasoned and enforceable arbitral award in any dispute which comes before him/her for adjudication.

Assessment

The eligible applications shall be assessed on the basis of the following factors:

1. Academic degrees, certification course or qualifications;
2. Current occupation, professional activity(/-ies), and position(s);
3. Fields of expertise/areas of practice;
4. Length of professional experience in the field of arbitration;
5. Empanelment with other arbitral institutions;
6. Number of cases conducted by the applicant as an Arbitrator;
7. Number of cases conducted by the applicant before Arbitral Tribunals;
8. Number of cases conducted by the applicant before Courts in cases relating to commercial law, preferably arbitration; and
9. Publications relating to arbitration in journals or books.

Screening Committee

1. A Screening Committee of at least three members shall be appointed by the Chief Executive Officer of the Jupitice ADR Centre to scrutinise the applications for empanelment.
2. The Screening Committee shall be guided by the factors of assessment laid down in these Rules while scrutinising and evaluating the applications.
3. The Screening Committee shall shortlist the applicants on the basis of the eligibility criteria and assessment factors laid down in these Rules.
4. The Screening Committee may call any shortlisted applicant for personal interaction, where deemed necessary.
5. Tenure of an empanelled Arbitral will be three years from the date of empanelment, provided the Neutral is not removed earlier by Jupitice ADR Centre.

Application Process

1. The empanelment process shall be transparent and rigorous.
2. Applicants must submit:
   • A completed application form;
   • Proof of qualifications and certifications;
   • A detailed resume/CV highlighting relevant experience; and
   • References from past clients or institutions.
3. Applications will be reviewed by the Screening Committee.
4. Evaluation criteria include qualifications, experience, technical skills, and ethical standing.
5. A thorough background check will be conducted to verify credentials and ensure no conflicts of interest.

Exemptions

Any person who has been a Judge in the Supreme Court of India, or a Judge in any of the High Courts in India or has been a Judicial Officer who has served with any other Court till his/her superannuation or Senior Advocate designated by the Supreme Court of India or any of the High Courts in India shall be exempted from the procedural requirements under these Rules. They shall be empanelled on submission of the application form and completion of other formalities.

Feedback

All the empanelled Neutrals may be subject to a feedback process as notified by Jupitice from time to time in which parties to the arbitration and their counsels may be asked to give feedback with respect to the Neutral appointed on their matter. Such feedback shall remain confidential and is for the internal assessment of the quality of empanelled Neutral. Jupitice shall maintain a strictly confidential register and record the feedback received from the arbitrating parties/lawyers. This Register shall be placed before the Chairperson of the Committee from time to time.

Re-evaluation of empanelled Neutrals

The Screening Committee may direct the re-evaluation of empanelled Neutrals under these Rules whenever deemed necessary.

Removal from the Panel

1. Grounds for removal may include, but are not limited to:
   • Violation of the Code of Conduct;
   • Consistent poor performance;
   • Failure to comply with platform policies; and
   • Any other misconduct deemed inappropriate.
2. The Jupitice ADR Centre reserves the right to remove any Neutral from its panel if it deems it appropriate to do so, without assigning any reasons.
3. On removal from the panel of Jupitice, such Neutral may be substituted in any ongoing arbitration where their appointment was made by Jupitice.

Empanelment by Invitation

Jupitice ADR Centre may invite any eminent person for empanelment as a Neutral.