In these Rules:

"Conciliation Agreement" means an agreement by the parties to submit to conciliation all or certain disputes which have arisen or which may arise between them; a Conciliation Agreement may be in the form of a conciliation clause in a contract or in the form of a separate contract; "Conciliator" includes a sole conciliator or all the conciliators where more than one is appointed; "APLS" means the A. P. LEGAL SERVICES PVT. LTD.  "Center" means the APLS Arbitration and Conciliation Center, a unit of APLS; Words used in the singular include the plural and vice versa, as the context may require.

Where a Conciliation Agreement provides for conciliation under the APLS Conciliation Rules, these Rules shall be deemed to form part of that Conciliation Agreement. Unless the parties have agreed otherwise, these Rules as in effect on the date of the commencement of the conciliation shall apply.

(a) A party to a Conciliation Agreement that wishes to commence a conciliation shall submit a Request for Conciliation in writing to the Center. It shall at the same time send a copy of the Request for Conciliation to the other party.

(b) The Request for Conciliation shall contain or be accompanied by

(i) the names, addresses and telephone, telex, telefax or other communication references of the parties to the dispute and of the representative of the party filing the Request for Conciliation;

(ii) a copy of the Conciliation Agreement; and

(iii) a brief statement of the nature of the dispute.

The date of the commencement of the conciliation shall be the date on which the Request for Conciliation is received by the Center.

The Center shall forthwith inform the parties in writing of the receipt by it of the Request for Conciliation and of the date of the commencement of the conciliation.

(a) Unless the parties have agreed themselves on the person of the conciliator or on another procedure for appointing the conciliator, the conciliator shall be appointed by the Center after consultation with the parties.

(b) The prospective conciliator shall, by accepting appointment, be deemed to have undertaken to make available sufficient time to enable the mediation to be conducted expeditiously.

The conciliator shall be neutral, impartial and independent.

(a) The parties may be represented or assisted in their meetings with the conciliator.

(b) Immediately after the appointment of the conciliator, the names and addresses of persons authorized to represent a party, and the names and positions of the persons who will be attending the meetings of the parties with the conciliator on behalf of that party, shall be communicated by that party to the other party, the conciliator and the Center.

The conciliation shall be conducted in the manner agreed by the parties. If, and to the extent that, the parties have not made such agreement, the conciliator shall, in accordance with these Rules, determine the manner in which the conciliation shall be conducted.

Each party shall cooperate in good faith with the conciliator to advance the conciliation as expeditiously as possible.

The conciliator shall be free to meet and to communicate separately with a party on the clear understanding that information given at such meetings and in such communications shall not be disclosed to the other party without the express authorization of the party giving the information.

(a) As soon as possible after being appointed, the conciliator shall, in consultation with the parties, establish a timetable for the submission by each party to the conciliator and to the other party of a statement summarizing the background of the dispute, the party's interests and contentions in relation to the dispute and the present status of the dispute, together with such other information and materials as the party considers necessary for the purposes of the conciliation and, in particular, to enable the issues in dispute to be identified.

(b) The conciliator may at any time during the conciliation suggest that a party provide such additional information or materials as the conciliator deems useful.

(c) Any party may at any time submit to the conciliator, for consideration by the conciliator only, written information or materials which it considers to be confidential. The conciliator shall not, without the written authorization of that party, disclose such information or materials to the other party.

(a) The conciliator shall promote the settlement of the issues in dispute between the parties in any manner that the conciliator believes to be appropriate, but shall have no authority to impose a settlement on the parties.

(b) Where the conciliator believes that any issues in dispute between the parties are not susceptible to resolution through conciliation, the conciliator may propose, for the consideration of the parties, procedures or means for resolving those issues which the mediator considers are most likely, having regard to the circumstances of the dispute and any business relationship between the parties, to lead to the most efficient, least costly and most productive settlement of those issues. In particular, the conciliator may so propose:

(i) an expert determination of one or more particular issues;

(ii) arbitration;

(iii) the submission of last offers of settlement by each party and, in the absence of a settlement through conciliation, arbitration conducted on the basis of those last offers pursuant to an arbitral procedure in which the mission of the arbitral tribunal is confined to determining which of the last offers shall prevail; or

(iv) Arbitration in which the conciliator will, with the express consent of the parties, act as sole arbitrator, it being understood that the conciliator may, in the arbitral proceedings, take into account information received during the conciliation.

No recording of any kind shall be made of any meetings of the parties with the conciliator.

Each person involved in the conciliation, including, in particular, the conciliator, the parties and their representatives and advisors, any independent experts and any other persons present during the meetings of the parties with the conciliator, shall respect the confidentiality of the conciliation and may not, unless otherwise agreed by the parties and the conciliator, use or disclose to any outside party any information concerning, or obtained in the course of, the conciliation. Each such person shall sign an appropriate confidentiality undertaking prior to taking part in the conciliation.

Unless otherwise agreed by the parties, each person involved in the conciliation shall, on the termination of the conciliation, return, to the party providing it, any brief, document or other materials supplied by a party, without retaining any copy thereof. Any notes taken by a person concerning the meetings of the parties with the conciliator shall be destroyed on the termination of the conciliation.

Unless otherwise agreed by the parties, the conciliator and the parties shall not introduce as evidence or in any manner whatsoever in any judicial or arbitration proceeding:

(i) any views expressed or suggestions made by a party with respect to a possible settlement of the dispute;

(ii) any admissions made by a party in the course of the conciliation;

(iii) any proposals made or views expressed by the conciliator;

(iv) the fact that a party had or had not indicated willingness to accept any proposal for settlement made by the conciliator or by the other party.

The conciliation shall be terminated

(i) by the signing of a settlement agreement by the parties covering any or all of the issues in dispute between the parties;

(ii) by the decision of the conciliator if, in the conciliator's judgment, further efforts at conciliation are unlikely to lead to a resolution of the dispute;

(iii) by a written declaration of a party at any time after attending the first meeting of the parties with the conciliator and before the signing of any settlement agreement..

1. Upon the termination of the conciliation, the conciliator shall promptly send to the Center a notice in writing that the conciliation is terminated and shall indicate the date on which it terminated, whether or not the conciliation resulted in a settlement of the dispute and, if so, whether the settlement was full or partial. The conciliator shall send to the parties a copy of the notice so addressed to the Center.
2. The Center shall keep the said notice of the conciliator confidential and shall not, without the written authorization of the parties, disclose either the existence or the result of the conciliation to any person.

(c) The Center may, however, include information concerning the conciliation in any aggregate statistical data that it publishes concerning its activities, provided that such information does not reveal the identity of the parties or enable the particular circumstances of the dispute to be identified.

Unless required by a court of law or authorized in writing by the parties, the conciliator shall not act in any capacity whatsoever, otherwise than as a mediator, in any pending or future proceedings, whether judicial, arbitral or otherwise, relating to the subject matter of the dispute.

1. The Request for Conciliation shall be subject to the payment to the Center of a registration fee, to the center. The amount of the registration fee shall be fixed in accordance with the Schedule of Fees applicable on the date of the Request for Conciliation.
2. The registration fee shall not be refundable.

(c) No action shall be taken by the Center on a Request for Conciliation until the registration fee has been paid.

(d) If a party who has filed a Request for Conciliation fails, within 15 days after a second reminder in writing from the Center, to pay the registration fee, it shall be deemed to have withdrawn its Request for Conciliation.

1. The amount and currency of the fees of the conciliator and the modalities and timing of their payment shall be fixed, in accordance with the provisions of this Rule, by the Center, after consultation with the conciliator and the parties.
2. The amount of the fees shall, unless the parties and the conciliator agree otherwise, be calculated on the basis of the hourly or, if applicable, daily indicative rates set out in the Schedule of Fees applicable on the date of the Request for Conciliation, taking into account the amount in dispute, the complexity of the subject matter of the dispute and any other relevant circumstances of the case..

DEPOSITS

Rule 23

(a) The Center may, at the time of the appointment of the conciliator, require each party to deposit an equal amount as an advance for the costs of the conciliation, including, in particular, the estimated fees of the conciliator and the other expenses of the conciliation. The amount of the deposit shall be determined by the Center.

(b) The Center may require the parties to make supplementary deposits.

(c) If a party fails, within 15 days after a second reminder in writing from the Center, to pay the required deposit, the conciliation shall be deemed to be terminated. The Center shall, by notice in writing, inform the parties and the conciliator accordingly and indicate the date of termination.

(d) After the termination of the conciliation, the Center shall render an accounting to the parties of any deposits made and return any unexpended balance to the parties or require the payment of any amount owing from the parties.

 

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COSTS

Rule 24

Unless the parties agree otherwise, the registration fee, the fees of the conciliator and all other expenses of the conciliation, including, in particular, the required travel expenses of the conciliator and any expenses associated with obtaining expert advice, shall be borne in equal shares by the parties.

EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY

Rule 25

Except in respect of deliberate wrongdoing, the conciliator, APLS and the Center shall not be liable to any party for any act or omission in connection with any conciliation conducted under these Rules.

WAIVER OF DEFAMATION

Rule 26

The parties and, by accepting appointment, the conciliator agree that any statements or comments, whether written or oral, made or used by them or their representatives in preparation for or in the course of the conciliation shall not be relied upon to found or maintain any action for defamation, libel, slander or any related complaint, and this Rule may be pleaded in bar to any such action.

SUSPENSION OF RUNNING OF LIMITATION PERIOD UNDER THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS

Rule 27

The parties agree that, to the extent permitted by the applicable law, the running of the limitation period under the Statute of Limitations or an equivalent law shall be suspended in relation to the dispute that is the subject of the conciliation from the date of the commencement of the conciliation until the date of the termination of the conciliation..

SCHEDULE OF FEES

FEES OF THE CENTER

Registration Fee

(Rule 21, APLS Conciliation Rules)

1. The amount of the registration fee shall be 0.10% of the value of the conciliation, subject to a minimum registration fee of Rs.5,000 and a maximum of 10 Sittings. The center may waive the maximum at its discretion. By way of example, the following registration fees could be payable where the value of the conciliation is the following amounts:

2. The value of the conciliation is determined by the total value of amounts claimed.

3. Where the Request for Conciliation does not indicate any claims for a monetary amount or the dispute concerns issues that are not quantifiable in monetary amounts, a registration fee of Rs.5000 shall be payable, subject to adjustment. The adjustment shall be made by reference to the registration fee that the Center, after consultation with the parties and the conciliator, determines in its discretion to be appropriate in the circumstances.

4. Any monetary amounts in dispute expressed in currencies other than Indian Rupees shall, for the purposes of calculating the registration fee, be converted to amounts expressed in Indian Rupees on the basis of the official exchange rate prevailing on the date of submission of the Request for Conciliation.

 CONCILIATORS' FEES

Indicative Hourly and Daily Rates