Arbitration Interim Relief Drafter

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name: arbitration-interim-relief-drafter
description: Drafts applications for interim measures connected with arbitration in India, including protection before or during proceedings, preservation of assets or evidence, security, injunctions, receivership, and tribunal-ordered relief. Use when a user asks for relief under sections 9 or 17 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, needs urgent protection pending constitution of the tribunal, or must choose between court and tribunal relief in an India-seated or India-connected matter. Distinct from emergency-arbitrator-application-drafter, which proceeds under institutional emergency rules.
---

# Arbitration Interim Relief Drafter (India)

## Purpose

Select and draft the correct interim-protection route without treating urgency as a substitute for jurisdiction, evidence, or a remedy tailored to the threatened harm.

## Required inputs

Obtain:

- the arbitration agreement, contract, amendments, and governing-law and seat provisions;
- the status of invocation and tribunal constitution;
- the precise relief sought, threatened act, urgency, and date of likely harm;
- evidence supporting the right asserted, harm, asset or property location, and respondent's conduct;
- prior notices, undertakings requested, related proceedings, and existing orders;
- the proposed court or tribunal, respondent details, and service information; and
- any institutional emergency route and why it is or is not adequate.

Treat the arbitration agreement, forum, tribunal status, factual basis, and requested protective measure as blocking. Do not draft an ex parte case without a complete account of material facts, including facts adverse to the applicant.

## Method

1. Retrieve the current official text of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 and current controlling authority. At minimum, verify sections 9, 17, 37, the definition and jurisdictional provisions relevant to the chosen forum, and any provision governing commencement or time limits.
2. Choose the route explicitly. Distinguish pre-constitution or post-award court protection from tribunal-ordered measures. Once the tribunal is constituted, address whether the section 17 remedy would be inefficacious before seeking court intervention; do not rely on urgency alone.
3. Establish jurisdiction and maintainability: arbitration agreement, seat and territorial connection, applicant's status as a party, proceeding stage, subject matter, parallel relief, and compliance with commencement requirements.
4. Define the protectable right and threatened harm. Tie every requested measure to identified property, money, evidence, conduct, or status quo; avoid a prayer broader than the pleaded risk.
5. Apply the current legal test for the particular remedy using retrieved authority. Address prima facie case, balance of convenience, irreparable or non-compensable harm, urgency, proportionality, clean hands, delay, and suitable security or undertaking where relevant.
6. Build the evidence chain. Cite each factual proposition to an affidavit paragraph and exhibit. Identify hearsay, missing proof, disputed facts, and documents needing certification or translation.
7. Draft notice or ex parte treatment. Explain any need for relief without notice, propose safeguards and a prompt return date, and provide for immediate service of the order and papers.
8. Draft precise prayers, including duration, compliance steps, reporting, access, custody, security, consequences, liberty to apply, and costs. Avoid asking the court or tribunal to grant final substantive relief through an interim order.
9. Create a post-order timeline. Where court relief precedes commencement, verify and state the current statutory period for commencing arbitration and any court-directed variation rather than relying on memory.

## Output

Produce:

1. **Route and maintainability note** — chosen forum, statutory basis, jurisdictional facts, and alternatives considered.
2. **Draft application** — cause title, synopsis, list of dates, jurisdiction, material facts, grounds, and prayers.
3. **Interim or ex parte prayer**, separately identified.
4. **Supporting affidavit structure** and exhibit list.
5. **Hearing note** — issues, evidence, likely objections, and short answers.
6. **Filing, service, and post-order checklist** with exact verification points.

## Guardrails

- Use only current official statutory text and current authoritative decisions for legal propositions.
- Do not suppress adverse facts, existing proceedings, prior refusals, delay, or communications inconsistent with urgency.
- Do not assert asset dissipation, fraud, insolvency, or evidence destruction without particularised support.
- Distinguish India-seated arbitration, foreign-seated arbitration, domestic award, and foreign award; do not assume the same route applies.
- Label every court-specific format, fee, affidavit, caveat, and filing requirement for local verification.