Corporate Debtor can pursue claim & counterclaim during Moratorium. Counterclaim determined first. No recovery if Debtor found liable.

The Tribunal allowed the Corporate Debtor to pursue both its claim and counter claim before the Arbitral Tribunal during the Moratorium period. It was decided that the counter claim should be determined before the claim, and both should be heard together. If the Corporate Debtor is found liable, no recovery can be made during the Moratorium. The appeal was disposed of with these observations, and no costs were awarded.

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Issues:
- Whether a counter claim can proceed during the period of Moratorium while the Adjudicating Authority allowed the Corporate Debtor to pursue the claim before the Arbitral Tribunal.

Analysis:
The judgment delves into the issue of whether a counter claim can be pursued during the Moratorium period while the Adjudicating Authority permits the Corporate Debtor to pursue a claim before the Arbitral Tribunal. The Appellant argued that the determination of the counter claim during the Moratorium should have been decided by the Adjudicating Authority instead of being left open for the Arbitral Tribunal to decide. The Tribunal issued notices to the Respondents, allowing the Arbitral Tribunal to proceed with both the claim and counter claim of the parties during the pendency of the appeal and proceedings before the Adjudicating Authority. The Resolution Professional had no objection to the counter claim being decided by the Arbitral Tribunal.

Furthermore, the judgment emphasizes that the claim of the Corporate Debtor can only be determined after the counter claim is decided in the same arbitral proceeding. The Tribunal opined that both the claim and counter claim should be heard together by the Arbitral Tribunal in the absence of any bar under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016. However, it was highlighted that if the Corporate Debtor is found liable to pay a certain amount, no recovery can be made during the Moratorium period. Ultimately, the appeal was disposed of with the aforementioned observations, and no costs were awarded in this matter.

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