Section 12A of the COMMERCIAL COURTS ACT 2015 (inserted by 2018 Amendment) requires:
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: D.
1. Section 12A of the Commercial Courts Act 2015 (inserted by the Commercial Courts (Amendment) Act, 2018 effective 3 May 2018):
2. (1) A suit, which DOES NOT contemplate any URGENT INTERIM RELIEF under this Act, shall NOT be instituted unless the plaintiff EXHAUSTS the REMEDY of PRE-INSTITUTION MEDIATION.
3. (2) The Central Government may authorise the AUTHORITIES CONSTITUTED UNDER THE LEGAL SERVICES AUTHORITIES ACT, 1987 to carry out pre-institution mediation.
4. (3) Mediation under sub-section (1) shall be COMPLETED within a period of THREE MONTHS from the date of application, extendable by 2 months with consent.
5. Patil Automation Pvt Ltd v. Rakheja Engineers Pvt Ltd, (2022) 10 SCC 1 confirmed that Section 12A is MANDATORY — failure to comply renders the suit liable to dismissal.
6. After the Mediation Act 2023, the Commercial Courts pre-institution mediation framework was integrated into the broader Mediation Act framework.
7. Hence option B is correct.
_Source: Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996 (Bare Act) + Mediation Act 2023 — Commercial Courts Act 2015, Section 12A (inserted by 2018 Amendment); Patil Automation Pvt Ltd v Rakheja Engineers Pvt Ltd (2022) 10 SCC 1_
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