In April 1921 a consent order was made referring to arbitration three suits relating to syndicates o...........

In April 1921, a consent order was made referring to arbitration, three suits relating to syndicates of two, six, and 10 firms each. In a chamber summons for extension of time for making the award, some of the defendants objected that the syndicate of 10 was an illegal association as it was not registered under s 4 of the Companies Act, 1956, although it was composed of more than 20 persons.

These defendants, therefore, objected that the reference was invalid; but, in August 1927, a consent order was made superseding the reference of April 1921 and referring to arbitration the same three suits along with two other suits also. In this consent order, all the parties agreed that the issue as to the legality of the syndicate should be treated as res judicata, nevertheless, a suit was filed by one of the parties to declare the reference to arbitration as invalid on the ground that the syndicate was illegal.