Investment Arbitration

Contract Interpretation, Domestic law, International Investment Arbitration, International Investment Law, Investment agreements, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investment law, Investment protection, Investment Treaties, Investor-State arbitration, ISDS, Sovereignty

(Hasselt University, KU Leuven)/ /Leave a comment

Balancing the concurrent rights of sovereign states to regulate in their interest and of foreign investors to be afforded certain standards of protection when investing in a foreign jurisdiction often leads to complex questions in investment arbitration claims. One uncommon, but not entirely novel issue, which was again brought to light in Iskandar Safa and…

Arbitration, Contract Drafting, Contract Interpretation, ESG, Insurance, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investment law, ISDS, Litigation, Remedies, Third party funding

, (Fieldfisher)/ /Leave a comment

Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) considerations have evolved from idealistic frameworks into binding legal, financial and reputational imperatives and responsibilities. Increasingly, international arbitration must grapple with the complex and often competing, or at times contradictory, demands that ESG compliance places on states, corporations and dispute resolution mechanisms. As set out below against an 80s soundtrack…

Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investment law, Investment Treaties, Investor-State arbitration, Investor-state tribunals, ISDS, Res Judicata

(University of Leicester)/ /1 Comment

The recent award in Ahron G. Frenkel v. Republic of Croatia has already succeeded in dividing the very tribunal that rendered it—never an encouraging omen. It is unlikely to cease causing a stir in the near future, given its immediate impact on the claimant and its longer-term contribution to the perennial headaches induced by the…

Achmea, Domestic Courts, International Investment Arbitration, International Investment Law, Intra-EU BIT's, Intra-EU BITs, Intra-EU Investment Arbitration, Intra-EU ISDS, Investment agreements, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, National Courts, PL Holdings

, (Fieldfisher)/ /1 Comment

In a recent decision (the “Decision“), the Amsterdam Court of Appeal (Gerechtshof Amsterdam) (the “Court”) ordered the claimant in an UNCITRAL arbitration brought against Poland under an intra-EU Bilateral Investment Treaty (“BIT“) to cooperate in terminating an arbitration, subject to a hefty daily penalty. Although there have been many court decisions addressing the enforcement of…

Colombia, Free Trade Agreements, Investment Arbitration, Investment protection, Treaty Interpretation

, (Adell & Merizalde)/ /Leave a comment
Asociación Latinoamericana de Arbitraje (ALARB)

The United States-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement (“TPA”), in force since 15 May 2012, has been interpreted through a 15 January 2025 decision (Decision No. 9) issued by the Free Trade Commission of the TPA (the “FTC Decision”), which introduced new binding interpretations of the treaty’s investment protection standards (Article 10.22.3). While much of the FTC…

Guatemala, Investment Arbitration, Jurisdictional challenge, Latin America, Legality of the investment

(ECIJA) and / /Leave a comment

In investment arbitration, it is widely recognized that to benefit from the protection of an investment treaty, the investment must be legal. Tribunals assess this legality either because the treaty explicitly mandates it (e.g., Ecuador-Sweden BIT) or because the tribunal assumes this authority even if the treaty is silent (e.g., Worley v. Ecuador). In either…

Investment, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investment law, Investment protection, Teaching International Investment Arbitration Series

(Duke University School of Law) and (White & Case LLP)/ /Leave a comment

One could be forgiven for thinking that teaching international economic law in the United States (“U.S.”) is challenging these days. The U.S. has disabled the World Trade Organization’s (“WTO”) Appellate Body. In the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (“USMCA”), the parties (following a transition period) eliminated Investor-State Dispute Settlement (“ISDS”) between the U.S. and Canada and curtailed…

Damages, Experts, Investment Arbitration

(Compass Lexecon)/ /3 Comments

Country Equity Risk Premium (CERP) represents the additional return equity investors require to compensate for the heightened risks of investing in a particular country. These risks may arise from political instability, economic volatility, currency fluctuations, expropriation threats, and weaknesses in the legal and regulatory framework. Each of these risk components can, in principle, be separately…

Expropriation, International Investment Arbitration, International Investment Law, Investment, Investment agreements, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investment law, Investment protection, Investment Treaties, Investor-State arbitration, ISDS, Jurisdiction, Jurisdiction of the arbitral tribunal, Jurisdictional challenge

/ /Leave a comment

The takeover of the Chinese-owned British Steel Limited by the UK Government under the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Act 2015 can lead to the submission of a dispute to investment treaty arbitration under the Agreement between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Government of the People’s Republic…

Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investor-State arbitration, ISDS, OECD, Tax, Taxation, UN

(HHP Chambers) and (WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business) - Institute for Accounting and Auditing)/ /Leave a comment

Recent amendments to the United Nations (“UN”) Model Tax Convention aim at banning the use of investor-State dispute settlement (“ISDS”) provisions for disputing tax measures, thereby attempting to deal a further blow to international investment agreements (IIAs). The UN Model Tax Convention is regularly updated and was drafted with the aim to cater for the…

DR-CAFTA, Exhaustion of Local Remedies, ICSID Arbitration, ICSID Convention, International Investment Arbitration, International Investment Law, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investment law, Investment protection, Investor-State arbitration

(Lewis & Clark Law School)/ /Leave a comment

On February 26, 2025, the Tribunal in Honduras Próspera Inc., et al. v. Republic of Honduras rejected an unprecedented attempt to dismiss investment treaty claims for failure to exhaust local remedies. While respondent states have often contended that claimants should have pursued local remedies for one reason or another, Honduras advanced a novel argument in…

2025 PAW, Arbitrator Selection, Central Asia, Code of Conduct, Independence and Impartiality, Investment Arbitration, ISDS, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mediation and Dispute Management, Paris Arbitration Week, Procedure, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan

(Linklaters; KU Leuven), (Nyenrode University), and (CREDIMI – University of Burgundy)/ /Leave a comment

On Day 3 of the 2025 Paris Arbitration Week (“PAW”), Nyenrode University organized a comprehensive conference, hosted by Linklaters Paris, examining the future of investment arbitration in the five Central Asian countries (Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan). The event featured a keynote address by Anna Joubin-Bret (UNCITRAL) and welcome remarks from Roland…

Deep Sea Mining, Investment Arbitration, Investment law, UNCLOS

(Laborde Law)/ /Leave a comment

As the world races toward a greener future, demand for critical materials is surging. In this high-stakes hunt for resources, the deep seabed beyond national jurisdiction (the “Area”) is increasingly seen as the next “El Dorado”. However, regulations governing its exploitation have yet to be finalized due to mounting environmental concerns, which prompted several stakeholders…

Commercial Arbitration, Contract Interpretation, Investment agreements, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investment law, Investment Treaties, Investor-State arbitration, Treaty, Treaty Interpretation

(University Paris Est Créteil, France)/ /Leave a comment

Dealing with parallel arbitrations can be very difficult, as it is caught between two conflicting constraints: on the one hand, the need to avoid any denial of justice and, on the other hand, the need to avoid two tribunals dealing with the same issue. This problem sometimes arises in treaty-based investment arbitration, particularly when the…

2025 PAW, Criminal law and arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Paris Arbitration Week

(ESSEC Business School; Paragon Advocacy)/ /Leave a comment

As part of Paris Arbitration Week 2025, ESSEC Business School hosted a roundtable discussion on “The Growing Influence of Criminal Law in International Arbitration.” The event was chaired by Veronika Korom (ESSEC Business School) and moderated by Geneviève Helleringer (ESSEC Business School). The panel brought together an exceptional group of ESSEC alumni active in the…

Australia, BIT, Commercial Reservation, Enforcement, From Jurisdiction, India, Investment Arbitration, Investor-State arbitration, New York Convention, Sovereign Immunity

, (Banco Chambers)/ /Leave a comment

In January 2025, a Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia (“Full Court”) upheld a claim by the Republic of India (“India”) to foreign state immunity from proceedings brought by various Mauritian entities (the “Investors”) to enforce an arbitral award in the Australian courts. The Full Court upheld immunity on the basis of India’s…

Australia, BIT, Enforcement, India, Investment Arbitration, Investment Treaties, Investor-State arbitration, New York Convention, Sovereign Immunity

(AnchayilKumar)/ /Leave a comment

The Antrix-Devas saga continues to present twists and turns (see previous coverage on the Blog here, here and here). The latest is the recent decision of the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia (the “Full Court”) in Republic of India v. CCDM Holdings, LLC & Ors. [2025] FCAFC 2. This decision concerned the…

Abuse of Rights, Abusive Claims, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investment Treaties, ISDS

, (Carleton University, Department of Law and Legal Studies)/ /Leave a comment

Investment tribunals are well-known to examine the abuse of rights doctrine in various contexts, including illegitimate corporate restructuring (Phillip Morris v Australia, para. 588; Lao Holdings v Laos I, para. 70; Alverley v Romania, para. 380), bad faith conduct (Phoenix v Czech Republic, paras.143-44; WCV World Capital Ventures Cyprus Ltd v Czech Republic, paras. 477-478),…

2024 in Review, ACICA, Arbitration Agreement, Australia, Australian Arbitration Week, Energy, Immunity, Investment Arbitration, Legislative amendment, Liability, New Zealand, Pacific Islands, Party autonomy, PCA, Public Policy, Standard of Proof

, , and (Munro Leys)/ /Leave a comment

Continuing with the trend of previous years, 2024 saw continued development throughout the region. In Australia, we saw an influx of meaningful, pro-arbitration court decisions, in the Pacific Islands, we saw the strengthening of legal frameworks, and in New Zealand, we saw a clarification of public policy considerations. We delve into these standout developments and…

Denial of Benefits, ECT Modernisation, ECT Withdrawal, Energy, Energy Charter Treaty, Energy Dispute, EU Law, European Commission, European Law, Intra-EU Investment Arbitration, Intra-EU ISDS, Investment, Investment agreements, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investment law, Investment protection, Investor-State arbitration, ISDS, modernisation process

(Geneva Graduate Institute)/ /Leave a comment

2024 witnessed significant developments concerning the Energy Charter Treaty (“ECT”), ranging from a new wave of withdrawals to the adoption of the modernised ECT in December. This post reviews the key ECT-related developments of 2024 and highlights relevant contributions published on the Kluwer Arbitration Blog (“KAB”).   New Wave of Withdrawals from the ECT In…

Fair and Equitable Treatment, Investment Arbitration, Remedies

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This post is concerned with the potential comparison between the fair and equitable (“FET”) standard and the rule against abuse of rights (“AR”), as regulated under municipal private law systems (mainly of continental origin).   A Fresh Take On FET Through the Prism of Comparative Law: A Role for AR? FET combines a wide array…

Environment, Environmental protection, Human Rights, Investment agreements, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investment law, Investor-State arbitration, ISDS

(Georgetown Law) and (Columbia Law School)/ /Leave a comment

This is the sixth consecutive year that we, either together or separately, have reported on trends at the intersection of human rights and international investment arbitration from the prior year (see prior Blog coverage, here, here, here, here, and here). As we emphasized last year, developments at this intersection continue directional trends from prior years. In particular, the continued reliance…

2024 in Review, Advisory Centre, Dispute Settlement, Investment Arbitration, Investment Disputes, Investor-State arbitration, ISDS, ISDS Reform, UNCITRAL WG III Series, UNCITRAL WG3 Series, Working Group III

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2024 appeared to be one of the busiest years for investor-State dispute settlement (“ISDS”) reform, with significant advances in the United Nations Commission on Trade Law (“UNCITRAL”) Working Group III discussions and the adoption of the modernized Energy Charter Treaty (“ECT”). This post exclusively focuses on Working Group III’s key milestones in 2024 and relevant…

2024 in Review, Brazil, Brazil, International arbitration, Investment Arbitration, Latin America

(Herbert Smith Freehills), (BakerHostetler), and (Barbosa, Müssnich & Aragão Advogados – BMA)/ /Leave a comment

Latin America continues to be a hotspot for investment arbitration. In 2024, investment arbitration in Latin America saw significant activity and notable developments. In addition to seeing a steady increment in arbitration cases, 2024 witnessed important legal reforms and evolving trends that are reshaping the region’s approach to investment and investor-State dispute settlement (“ISDS”). This…