The respondents brought a motion to stay the applicant's court application in favour of arbitration pursuant to s. 7(1) of the Arbitration Act, 1991.
The dispute arose from a royalty agreement concerning mining claims, which contained an arbitration clause.
The applicant argued that the court should determine the arbitrator's jurisdiction based on exceptions to the competence-competence principle.
The court found that the issues raised, including limitation periods, termination rights, and the application of contra proferentem, required more than a superficial review of the evidentiary record and were not pure questions of law.
The motion to stay was granted, and the alternative request for security for costs was dismissed.