International arbitration

Arbitrators, Conflicts of interest, Corruption, Decision Making, IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest, ICSID, In House Counsel, Independence and Impartiality, Institutional Arbitration, International arbitration, ISDS, Law Firms, Technology, UNCITRAL

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International arbitration is a constantly evolving field, shaped by global shifts, technological advancements, and changing expectations. On 31 August 2023 and 1 September 2023, the ICAL Alumni Association held the ICAL 20th Anniversary Conference entitled “Evolution or Revolution: Have We Mastered International Arbitration or Do We Need a New Blueprint for the Future?”. Carolyn Lamm’s (White &…

Arbitration, Arbitration Institutions and Rules, Asia, Asia-Pacific, Institutional Arbitration, Institutional Rules, Intellectual Property, Intellectual Property Rights, International arbitration, KCAB, Korea, South Korea

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KCAB International

In recent years, there has been a significant increase in IP cross-border disputes, including in non-traditional sectors. The Korean Commercial Arbitration Board (“KCAB”), which is the sole arbitral institution in Korea that is statutorily authorized to settle disputes under the Korean Arbitration Act, has experienced a gradual increase in IP-related cases. This article aims to…

Empirical Research, International arbitration, Queen Mary- White & Case Survey, Singapore International Dispute Resolution Academy, Surveys

(Singapore International Dispute Resolution Academy)/ /Leave a comment

Knowledge and information with respect to international dispute resolution processes are mostly limited to our own experiences, the jurisdictions we operate in, or the cases we deal with in various roles; the rest is anecdotal evidence. But what are the preferences of the users and what are their experiences like globally? Do the international dispute…

Advocacy, Closing Statements, International arbitration, Opening Statements, Psychology, Young ICSID

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On May 22, 2023, Young ICSID’s first “Advocacy Skills Training: Making an Effective Opening and Closing Statement” took place. It was opened by Celeste E. Salinas Quero and featured Klaus Reichert SC and Donald E. Vinson, Ph.D., who are authors of “Arbitration: The Art & Science of Persuasion”. The two-hour training, held both online and…

International arbitration, LIDW 2023, State, War

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London International Disputes Week 2023 (“LIDW 2023”) carried on with full pace on its third day, 18 May 2023. This blog post covers one of the most attention-grabbing events of the day, namely, the “Disputes Involving States Arising Out of War” event. The moderators for the event were Professor Loukas Mistelis (Queen Mary University of…

ECT Modernisation, Energy, Energy Charter Treaty, Environment, EU Law, International arbitration

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The modernization of the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) has been debated among scholars, with some supporting it and others criticizing the process and outcome. The vote on the modernization was postponed indefinitely due to ongoing debates about the Treaty’s future, including various withdrawals from it. The modernization process encapsulates broader reform efforts and attempts to…

Arbitration, Conference, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration

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On January 13, 2023 the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University hosted the 5th annual Schiefelbein Global Dispute Resolution Conference.  Like previous iterations of this conference, the innovative program featured top lawyers, internationally recognized mediators, academics, and leaders of arbitration institutions discussing timely issues in international dispute resolution. This year’s conference…

BIT, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Uncategorized

(AnchayilKumar) and (JSA, Advocates & Solicitors)/ /2 Comments

India’s Parliamentary Committee on External Affairs (the “PCEA”) recently submitted two reports to the Parliament relating to bilateral investment treaties (“BITs”). The first report –submitted in December 2021 – contained a broad review of India’s engagement with BITs and made several recommendations. The second report – submitted in July 2022 – took note of the…

Climate change, ECT Modernisation, Energy Charter Treaty, EU Law, International arbitration

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Seeing the Agreement in Principle on Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) “modernization” and its leaked full text, the “modernization” misnomer can safely be abandoned. The renegotiated ECT does not rise to the mounting global challenges regarding energy investment, climate action, and sustainable development. The ECT reform process missed the mark in nature, scope, ambition, and speed…

Andorra, Arbitration, International arbitration

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The history of arbitration in the Principality of Andorra began with two arbitration procedures in the years 1278 and 1288 which led to the signing, between the Bishop of Urgell and the Earl of Foix, of the Paréages which created the Principality. Despite this historical background and the fact that arbitration has been conducted in…

Arbitration Tech Toolbox, International arbitration, Technology, UNCITRAL

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From 28 March to 1 April 2022, Working Group II of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) held a Colloquium to explore legal issues related to dispute resolution in the digital economy and to identify the scope and nature of possible legislative work. Forty-eight member States, 27 observer States and 57 invited…

Canada, International arbitration, VanIAC

(Farris LLP, VanIAC), , (Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP, VanIAC), and (Fasken LLP, VanIAC)/ /Leave a comment

Canada’s west coast has long welcomed arbitration as a means of dispute resolution and provided a venue for arbitrations of all kinds. The Vancouver International Arbitration Centre (VanIAC) – established in 1986 under the name British Columbia International Commercial Arbitration Centre (BCICAC) – has recently made further strides in providing parties with workable and efficient…

ICSID, International arbitration, Investment, Investment Arbitration, Jurisdiction

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The debate surrounding the meaning and scope of the term ‘investment’ under the ICSID Convention is a product of the larger tussle between capital exporting and capital importing states, which convened at Washington in the search for a mutually beneficial agreement on foreign investments. It has been argued by Prof. Julian Davis Mortenson that ‘investment’…

ICSID, ICSID Amendments, ICSID Proceedings, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Third party funding

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On March 21, 2022, the Member States of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID”) approved a comprehensive reform of its rules and regulations, including the rules of procedure for ICSID arbitration proceedings (“New ICSID Rules”). Drafted over a five-year consultation process and six working papers, this profound amendment aims to “modernize, simplify,…

empirical data, International arbitration, Legal indicators, State Responsibility

(International University of Rabat)/ /Leave a comment

Modern society is amazed by empirical analysis, and the legal world is no exception. Indicators, rankings, and reports have been widely used to compare the independence and efficiency of legal systems with very different cultural and historical backgrounds. They are often regularly published and updated by think tanks and international organizations, both governmental and non-governmental….

Arbitration, Arbitration Proceedings, BIT, International arbitration, Intra-EU BITs, Investment Arbitration, Joint Interpretation Clauses, NAFTA, Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties

(University of Naples Federico II)/ /Leave a comment

State parties’ “mutual actions” over a treaty – including interventions such as interpretation, modification and termination – have flourished in recent investment treaty practice. This trend brings to the fore the question of whether there are any limits to such actions, particularly due to the involvement of non-State entities, such as investors and arbitral tribunals….

Case Management, England, Insolvency, International arbitration

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Insolvency-related claims arising from contracts containing arbitration clauses continue to culminate in intriguing cases before the England and Wales High Court (a previous post on the Blog analysed the Riverrock Securities Limited v International Bank of St Petersburg (Joint Stock Company) [2020] EWHC 2483 (Comm)). In a recent case titled The Deposit Guarantee Fund for…

BIT, Counterclaims, ICSID, ICSID Amendments, ICSID Arbitration, ICSID Convention, ICSID Proceedings, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Investment law, ISDS, ISDS Reform, Third party funding

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On January 20, 2022, ICSID submitted its amended rules to the Administrative Council for a vote, marking the end of the five-year-old process of modernizing the ICSID Rules. ICSID members are expected to cast a vote on the amended rules by March 21, 2022, and if approved, the rules will enter into force on July…

Arbitration Awards, International arbitration, Interpretation, Investment Arbitration, Regime Interaction, Regime Interaction in Investment Arbitration, Treaty Interpretation, VCLT

(Law Offices of Kiran N Gore PLLC; The George Washington University Law School)/ /Leave a comment

In 2011, in an article titled ‘W(h)ither Fragmentation? On the Literature and Sociology of International Investment Law’, Professor Stephan Schill reflected on the prior decade of scholarly and practical developments in international investment law (IIL). He referred to the boom in specialised scholarship and the more than 400 investor-State disputes then in existence as reasons…

Arbitration Institutions and Rules, Human Rights, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Regime Interaction, Regime Interaction in Investment Arbitration

(Columbia Law School) and (Georgetown Law)/ /1 Comment

Globalization has diversified the actors, institutions, norms, and instruments on the international legal stage. With diversification comes increased specialization and, in turn, organization around so-called regimes. The notion that international legal regimes can exist autonomously has long been refuted; indeed, each regime draws from general international law to some degree. If regimes are not autonomous,…

Arbitration, BIT, Climate change, Environment, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Reform, Regime Interaction, Regime Interaction in Investment Arbitration

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Nearly 30 years have passed since world leaders signed the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (“UNFCCC”), agreeing to combat “dangerous human interference with the climate system.” For many of those years, nobody seemed to take that commitment very seriously. But things look different now: climate law has hit its stride. At COP26 in November…

Arbitration Institutions and Rules, BIT, Counterclaims, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Regime Interaction, Regime Interaction in Investment Arbitration

(Stockholm University) and (Durham Law School)/ /Leave a comment

This post deals with the conceptual underpinnings and theoretical justification for the practice of counterclaims in investment arbitration. First, it is important to delineate this post from an analysis of counterclaims case-law in investment arbitration, as ample accounts of the counterclaim debate in practice can be found here, here, and here.  Equally, this post does…

BIT, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Regime Interaction, Regime Interaction in Investment Arbitration, Sustainability

(Durham Law School), , and (The Australian National University)/ /1 Comment

Debates about the fragmentation of international law and the sometimes conflicting relationship between a state’s and investor’s obligations under international investment law (“IIL”), on the one hand, and public international law and domestic law, on the other, have gained renewed relevance for investment arbitration. Issues related to the interactions between these regimes have featured in…

Diversity, HKIAC, ICC, International arbitration, LCIA, SIAC

, (Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co.) and (Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas )/ /Leave a comment

Introduction In the past few years, there has been a visible focus on ensuring diversity, especially in terms of gender, in international arbitration (IA). This engagement has, arguably, assumed the most prominent or tangible form in respect of arbitrator appointments, which has been previously discussed here and here. One of the most significant steps taken…