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CA Deepak Gupta vs. CA Shubham Jain

Arbitration Petition · 2026:DHC:9061Decided 12 Oct 2026New Delhi Bench
ARB.P. 950/2026CNR: DLHC010239422026
Justice Om Prakash Shukla

Background

Two Chartered Accountants were in a commercial dispute covered by a valid arbitration agreement between them. Rather than go straight to arbitration, both sides jointly asked the Court to first refer their dispute to mediation.

Decision Breakdown

The Court sent the matter to the Delhi High Court's Mediation and Conciliation Centre (SAMADHAN) for three weeks, while simultaneously appointing a named Sole Arbitrator to take over if mediation fails, so the arbitration process can begin immediately without a second round of court proceedings, subject to the arbitrator's standard independence disclosures and the Delhi International Arbitration Centre's rules and fees.

Lesson Learnt

Even in commercial arbitration matters, courts actively encourage parties to attempt mediation first, while keeping arbitration ready as an immediate fallback rather than causing delay if settlement talks don't work out.

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