Arbitration Petition Filing explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Three applications bring most arbitration matters before a court: interim measures under section 9, appointment of an arbitrator under section 11 and setting aside an award under section 34. This article sets out what each section itself requires of the applicant, as per the India Code consolidated text consulted; later amendments should be checked. It then gives drafting pointers, which are general good practice and not part of the Act. If you need one of these applications prepared or answered, our legal dispute resolution team can take it up.
Section 9 goes to the "Court" as section 2(1)(e) defines it, before or during the arbitration or after the award but before enforcement. Section 11 goes to the Supreme Court or the High Court, or their designate, after the thirty-day steps have failed. Section 34 goes to the Court within three months of receiving the award, plus thirty days on sufficient cause, and only after a prior notice to the other party. The Act prints no form, fee or registry step for any of the three; those come from the rules of the court concerned.
The three applications side by side
| Point | Section 9 | Section 11 | Section 34 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Interim measures of protection | Appointment of an arbitrator | Setting aside an arbitral award |
| Who applies | A party | A party, by a request | A party, by an application |
| To whom | The Court (section 2(1)(e)) | The Supreme Court or, as the case may be, the High Court, or any person or institution designated by such Court | The Court (section 2(1)(e)) |
| When | Before or during arbitral proceedings, or after the award but before it is enforced under section 36 | After thirty days under sub-section (4) or (5), or on a failure under an agreed procedure (sub-section (6)) | Not after three months from receipt of the award; a further thirty days on sufficient cause, but not thereafter |
| What must be shown | A matter within sub-section (1)(i) or (ii) | The existence of an arbitration agreement (sub-section (6A)) and the failed step | A ground in sub-section (2) or (2A) |
| Condition before filing | None printed | The request to the other party and the lapse of thirty days, where sub-section (4) or (5) applies | Prior notice to the other party and an affidavit endorsing compliance (sub-section (5)) |
| Time for disposal | None printed | Endeavour within sixty days from service of notice on the opposite party | In any event within one year from service of the prior notice |
| What follows | Appeal under section 37(1)(b) | Decision is final; no appeal including Letters Patent Appeal (section 11(7)) | Appeal under section 37(1)(c) |
Which Court
Section 2(1)(e) defines "Court" for Part I.
- Arbitration other than international commercial arbitration: the principal Civil Court of original jurisdiction in a district, including the High Court in exercise of its ordinary original civil jurisdiction, having jurisdiction to decide the questions forming the subject-matter of the arbitration if the same had been the subject-matter of a suit. It does not include a Civil Court of a grade inferior to the principal Civil Court, or a Court of Small Causes.
- International commercial arbitration: the High Court in exercise of its ordinary original civil jurisdiction having that jurisdiction and, in other cases, a High Court having jurisdiction to hear appeals from decrees of courts subordinate to it.
Section 11 is different. Under section 11(12) the request goes to the Supreme Court in an international commercial arbitration, and in any other arbitration to the High Court within whose local limits the principal Civil Court referred to in section 2(1)(e) is situate.
Section 42 adds that where, with respect to an arbitration agreement, any application under Part I has been made in a Court, that Court alone has jurisdiction over the arbitral proceedings, and all subsequent applications arising out of that agreement and the arbitral proceedings shall be made in that Court and in no other Court. See section 42 and, for commercial disputes, section 10 of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015.
Section 9: interim measures by the Court
A party may apply for the appointment of a guardian for a minor or person of unsound mind for the purposes of the arbitral proceedings, or for an interim measure of protection in respect of:
- the preservation, interim custody or sale of goods which are the subject-matter of the arbitration agreement;
- securing the amount in dispute in the arbitration;
- the detention, preservation or inspection of any property or thing which is the subject-matter of the dispute;
- interim injunction or the appointment of a receiver;
- such other interim measure of protection as may appear to the Court to be just and convenient.
Two limits are printed. If the Court passes an interim order before the arbitral proceedings commence, the proceedings shall be commenced within ninety days from the date of the order or within such further time as the Court may determine (section 9(2)). And once the arbitral tribunal has been constituted, the Court shall not entertain the application unless it finds that circumstances exist which may not render the remedy under section 17 efficacious (section 9(3)). The opening words of section 9(1) print "apply to a court" with a small "c", while the rest of the section says "the Court". See section 9.
Section 11: appointment of an arbitrator
The request can be made when a party has not appointed its arbitrator within thirty days from receipt of a request from the other party, when the two appointed arbitrators have not agreed on the third within thirty days from the date of their appointment, when the parties have not agreed on a sole arbitrator within thirty days from receipt of a request to so agree, or when a step under an agreed procedure has failed. The examination is confined to the existence of an arbitration agreement (section 11(6A)). Before appointing, the authority seeks a written disclosure from the prospective arbitrator in terms of section 12(1) (section 11(8)). Every sub-section is explained in our article on section 11.
Section 34: setting aside an award
The applicant must bring the case within the grounds in section 34(2) or, for arbitrations other than international commercial arbitrations, section 34(2A). Grounds under section 34(2)(a) are established on the basis of the record of the arbitral tribunal. The three months run from receipt of the award or, if a request under section 33 was made, from the date the tribunal disposed of it. Filing does not by itself stay the award: section 36(2) requires a separate application for stay. The grounds are set out in our article on section 34, and stay in section 36.
What the Act does not print
The sections say who may apply, where, when and on what grounds. They do not print:
- a form or format for any of the three applications;
- a list of documents to be annexed (section 8(2), by contrast, requires the original arbitration agreement or a duly certified copy with an application under that section);
- any fee;
- any registry step, numbering or listing procedure;
- the form or length of the prior notice under section 34(5).
Section 82 says the High Court may make rules consistent with the Act as to all proceedings before the Court under the Act, and section 11(10) allows a scheme for matters under section 11. No such rules or scheme are printed in the text consulted, so check the current rules of the court where you will file.
Drafting pointers (general good practice, not requirements of the Act)
The points below are our suggestions for a clear application. None of them is prescribed by the Act, and the rules of the court concerned prevail.
- Start with the arbitration agreement. Quote the clause and say which limb of section 7(4) or (5) it satisfies; see section 7.
- State why this forum. Tie the facts to section 2(1)(e) or section 11(12), and mention any earlier application so that section 42 can be applied.
- Give a dated chronology. For section 11, the date the request was received and the thirtieth day; for section 34, the date the signed award was received, any section 33 request and its disposal, and the date the prior notice was served.
- Match each prayer to the provision. In a section 9 application, identify the sub-clause of section 9(1)(ii) relied on and, if the tribunal is already constituted, why section 17 would not be efficacious.
- Plead section 34 grounds by sub-clause. Set each ground under its own heading and refer to the page of the tribunal's record that supports it.
- Keep the stay application separate. Section 36(2) speaks of a separate application made for that purpose.
- Annex the papers the forum will need: the agreement, the notices exchanged, proof of receipt and, for section 34, the signed award.
A prior notice under section 34(5), or a request to appoint under section 11, is a short document, but its date starts a clock. Our legal notice drafting service prepares both.
An example
Sabarmati Tools has an award against it, received on a given date, in an arbitration other than an international commercial arbitration. It wants the award set aside and enforcement held back. The steps the Act prints are: a prior notice to the other party (section 34(5)); an application to the Court within three months of receipt, with an affidavit endorsing compliance; and a separate application for stay under section 36(2). Under section 42, if an earlier section 9 application in the same arbitration was made in a particular Court, the section 34 application is to be made in that Court.
Need help with an arbitration application?
Each of these applications is decided on dates and on a narrow question. Our legal dispute resolution service prepares the application, the supporting chronology and the annexures, and checks the current rules of the court concerned before filing.
Key takeaways
- Sections 9 and 34 go to the Court defined in section 2(1)(e); section 11 goes to the Supreme Court or the High Court or their designate.
- Thirty days is the waiting period in section 11(4) and (5); three months plus thirty days is the limit in section 34(3); ninety days is the period in section 9(2).
- Section 34 needs a prior notice and an affidavit; a stay needs a separate application.
- Section 42 fixes one Court for later applications.
- Forms, fees and registry steps are not in the Act; check the rules of the court concerned.
Read next
- Section 9: interim measures by court
- Section 2: definitions, including "Court"
- Section 37: appealable orders
- Sections 82 to 84: rules by the High Court and Central rules
Disclaimer: Based on the India Code consolidated text of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, whose footnotes show amendments up to Act 3 of 2021 and a latest date of 12 October 2023, as consulted on 2 October 2026. Rules, regulations and notifications under the Act, later amendments and the commencement of the Mediation Act, 2023 should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.