Future Retail and Amazon have been in a legal battle ever since Reliance announced that it will acquire most of Future Group's retail, wholesale, and logistics business. The Supreme Court ruled in favour of Amazon by accepting its appeal against a Delhi High Court order which let the deal between Reliance and Future Retail proceed. The court held that the emergency arbitrator's award obtained by Amazon in Singapore under the rules of the Singapore International Arbitration Center (SIAC) can be legally enforced in India. Why it matters? Both Reliance and Amazon are trying to expand their online and offline retail offerings. Reliance is trying to acquire Future Retail to do this, while Amazon is trying to prevent this deal from happening. The Future vs Amazon legal battle has been going on since October 2020 and the Supreme Court's decision is a big win for Amazon. The court's verdict also provides clarification on whether Section 17 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996 covers orders issued by emergency arbitrators. Future vs Amazon: Brief timeline of events November 2019 –Amazon acquired a 49 percent stake in Future Coupons, a promoter company that owns about 7.3 percent stake in Future Retail. August 2020 – Reliance announced that it will acquire most of Future Group’s retail, wholesale, and logistics business in a deal worth Rs 24,713 crore. Amazon objected to the Reliance deal in October 2020 saying that its agreement with Future Coupons had a non-compete-like pact and right of first refusal against deals with competitors like Reliance Retail. October 25,…
