The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has said that it will need to consider the award given by the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) before it arrives at a decision in the ongoing dispute between the US-based fast food chain McDonald’s and its Indian partner Vikram Bakshi.

A bench chaired by Justice SJ Mukhopadhya said that NCLAT would need to consider the impact of the international arbitration tribunal’s decision and whether it’s a case of arbitral dispute or a case of oppression and mismanagement.

The bench said that this needed to be done to understand which jurisdiction will prevail.

The NCLAT is next scheduled to hear the matter on October 25.

NCLAT was hearing appeals by McDonald’s and Bakshi.

The McDonald’s appeal is challenging a National Company Law Tribunal order passed in July that reinstated Bakshi as the MD of Connaught Plaza Restaurant Ltd (CPRL), a 50:50 joint venture of McDonald’s India and Vikram Bakshi.

The two partners have been in involved in a legal tussle since 2013.

Meanwhile, Bakshi has sought relief from the franchise agreement termination notice of McDonald’s India.

A spokesperson for McDonald’s India said: “We are reviewing the direction from the court, but have no other information to share at this time.” Bakshi, however, declined to comment immediately, saying he was waiting for the official order.

Stating that the arbitration proceedings are confidential, both the parties have in the past, refused to reveal the details or comment on the specifics of the award.

However, according to media reports, the London Court of International Arbitration had said that Bakshi should sell his stake in CPRL to McDonald’s at a fair market valuation which should be determined by independent experts.

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