Right To First Refusal Cannot Be Exercised After Making A Counter-Offer To The Seller: Delhi High Court

[13 May 2022] The High Court of Delhi has held that a party cannot demand its ‘Right to First Refusal’ after making a counter-offer to the seller. The Single Bench of Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani has held that when the party that has been given the right to first refusal (RoFR) makes a counter-offer, the seller becomes entitled to sell the subject goods to the third parties. The Court further held that the court while exercising powers under Section 9 of the A&C Act cannot grant interim relief in the nature of specific performance when it will undoubtedly and obviously be the essential claim and relief that the petitioner will seek in the arbitral proceedings. The Court also observed that the court would not grant mandatory injunctions at the interlocutory stage when disputed rival contentions are yet to be decided.