The Group of Companies Doctrine in International Arbitration: India, Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom

In late 2023 an Indian court revisited the Group of Companies doctrine pertaining to arbitration. This article will undertake a limited examination and comparison of this doctrine between Australia, India, the United States and the United Kingdom. It will be argued that the application of this doctrine is not universally endorsed and today, is limited to India. On that basis, the question that arises is whether it is time for the other jurisdictions that have been compared, to consider adopting the doctrine in light of the developments across the digital economy? This article will introduce smart contracts to the conversation in relation to the group of companies' doctrine. A notable difference today is that smart contracts are supported generally by blockchain technology and code. Thus, when assessing the application of the group of companies doctrine, the arbitral tribunal may be required to also assess the smart contract(s) itself, and their code.