Laura Halonen, Author at Kluwer Arbitration Blog

Achmea, Energy Charter Treaty, Enforcement, EU Law, Germany, Intra-EU BITs, Intra-EU ISDS

Berlin Court Finds that ICSID Arbitrations Are Immune from Achmea and Komstroy – At Least While They Are Ongoing

Laura Halonen, Sophie Eichhorn (WAGNER Arbitration)/July 21, 2022July 30, 2022 /1 Comment

Germany found itself as the hotseat of the “battle” between EU law and investment arbitration in May 2016 when the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof) referred questions relating to the compatibility of EU law with the arbitration clause in the Slovakia-Netherlands BIT to the Court of Justice of the European Union (“ECJ”) in Slovakia v….

International Law, Intra-EU BITs, Intra-EU Investment Arbitration, Intra-EU ISDS, Investment Arbitration, Sunset clauses

Termination of Intra-EU BITs: Commission and Most Member States Testing the Principle of Good Faith under International Law

Laura Halonen (WAGNER Arbitration)/May 13, 2020May 13, 2020 /Leave a comment

The long-awaited Agreement to terminate intra-EU BITs (bilateral investment treaties) was signed on 5 May 2020 (the “Termination Agreement”). According to the European Commission, the Termination Agreement “implements the March 2018 European Court of Justice judgment (Achmea case), where the Court found that investor-State arbitration clauses in [intra-EU BITs] are incompatible with EU Treaties.” The…