On May 14, 2024, the traditional Rio de Janeiro International Arbitration Conference promoted by Canal Arbitragem, under the academic coordination of João Bosco Lee, Lauro Gama, and Maurício Almeida Prado, was held at the auditorium of the Fundação Getúlio Vargas (‘FGV-RJ’). Conceived nearly 20 years ago by two of the greatest authorities in national arbitration,…
The Ecuadorian government held a referendum and a public consultation on 21 April 2024. Question D of the referendum asked citizens: “Do you agree that the Ecuadorian State recognizes international arbitration as a method to resolve disputes related to investment, contractual, or commercial matters?” (free translation). The substantive proposal of the question was merely based…
In the 2022 case of Omega Engineering LLC and Oscar Rivera v. Republic of Panama (ICSID Case No. ARB/16/42), the Tribunal faced the challenge of distinguishing between a state’s sovereign acts and its commercial activities. This case raised the critical question of when a state’s conduct shifts from exercising sovereign authority to acting as a…
The growing interference of Mexican drug cartels in mining activities questions whether international investors can be protected by investment treaties. This post offers an initial outlook as to whether cartel extortion could constitute a violation of the Full Protection and Security (“FPS”) standard typically found in such treaties. Background During the last 17 years,…
On February 28, 2024, the arbitral tribunal in the arbitration between Red Eagle Exploration Limited (“Red Eagle”) and Colombia (ICSID Case No. ARB/18/13) issued an award under the Canada-Colombia FTA (2008)) (“FTA”). In this post, we discuss the background to this decision as well as the tribunal’s ruling regarding the merits (minimum standard of treatment…
Previous posts have addressed advocacy techniques in arbitration (for example, see here, here, here, here, and here). This is not an attempt to summarize them, but rather to present the topic in a different light. As psychologists have long discovered, information that provides imagery and vividness has a greater impact on inferences and memory retention….
On 28 December 2023, the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas (the “Court”) delivered a consolidated judgment in Gabriele Volpi v. Delanson Services Limited & 2 others and Delanson Services Limited v. Matteo Volpi and 2 others (“Judgment”), resolving a longstanding trust dispute between Italian-Nigerian billionaire, Gabriele Volpi (“Gabriele”) and his son, Matteo…
Under article 14, §1 of the Brazilian Arbitration Act (“BAA”), arbitrators bear the duty to disclose “any circumstances likely to give rise to justifiable doubt as to their impartiality and independence”. Because the concept of “justifiable doubt” is subjective, Brazilian jurisprudence often features incohesive and contradictory understandings of the scope and effects of such duty vis-à-vis…
In October 2023, the Law 14,711/2023 was sanctioned, aimed to establish new rules on foreclosures, seizures, mortgages, and transfers of properties to settle debts, by amending certain sections of Law 8,935/1994 (which regulates notary and registration services). Some argue that the inclusion of a legal provision authorizing public notaries to act as arbitrators had two…
For several years, the uncertainty of the (un)clean hands principle has been subject to debate due to the diverse approaches taken by arbitral tribunals. However, in September 2023, the tribunal in Glencore Finance (Bermuda) Ltd. v. The Plurinational State of Bolivia (PCA Case No. 2016-39) may have indirectly settled the uncertainty. The case proposes a…
On 22 December 2023, a Tribunal composed of Prof. Bernard Hanotiau, Prof. Brigitte Stern and Dr. Andrés Rigo Sureda (President) issued a final award (“Award”) in an investment treaty case PCA 2019-15 (“Dispute”), between Worley International Inc. (“Worley” or “Claimant”) and The Republic of Ecuador (“Ecuador” or “Respondent”). The dispute arose in connection with agreements…
The Constitutional Court of Ecuador (“Court”) has recently analyzed the constitutionality of two International Agreements. On 28 July 2023, the Court declared unconstitutional the provision contained in chapter 15.20 of the Trade Association Agreement between Ecuador and Costa Rica (Decision No. 2-23-TI/23), among other reasons, because it incorporated an state-private party (investor) dispute resolution clause…
On 8 September 2023, a tribunal comprising Prof. Ricardo Ramírez Hernández (President), Prof. John Gotanda and Prof. Philippe Sands issued its award in Glencore Finance (Bermuda) Ltd v. Bolivia (PCA Case No. 2016-39), a bilingual (English and Spanish) UNCITRAL arbitration under the UK-Bolivia bilateral investment treaty (the “Treaty”). A decision on interpretation and correction of…
In a decision dated 29 December 2023, the Chilean Court of First Instance upheld an earlier decision dated 7 November 2023, which had granted a pre-judicial conservatory measure in support of a potential ICSID arbitration. The ruling prevents the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of the Republic of Chile (hereinafter, “Chile“) from calling performance bonds of approximately…
On December 8, 2023, a Permanent Court of Arbitration tribunal composed of José Emilio Nunes Pinto (president), Guido Tawil, and Claus von Wobeser issued its final award in Mota Engil v. Paraguay (the “State” or “MOPC”)1)Mota-Engil Ingeniería y Construcción S.A. – Sucursal Paraguay v. Republic of Paraguay – Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Comunicaciones, PCA…
Traditionally, investor-state dispute settlement (“ISDS”) has not been linked to Environmental, Social, or Governance principles (“ESG”). At least not explicitly. Nevertheless, a growing number of arbitrations revolve around matters like environmental permits, green incentives, the need for a “social license,” and corruption. Interestingly, these matters have arisen even in the absence of explicit ESG regulations…
Clyde & Co LLP partnered with Jus Mundi and Queen Mary University of London (“QMUL”) School of International Arbitration to bring together a number of speakers on the development of arbitration and practice of investment in the Latin American (“LatAm”) region. The event kicked-off with a review of Jus Mundi’s latest energy arbitration report which…
On 22 November 2023, the Brazilian Arbitration Committee (“CBAr”) and the Brazilian Association of Jurimetrics (“ABJ”) officially launched the final report on the Arbitration Observatory project (“Report”), in an in-person event at the Attorney’s Association of São Paulo that attracted many law students, lawyers, and arbitrators (see here for further details). The Report aims at…
Precautionary measures in international arbitration is a topic that never ceases to raise new questions and enhance further advancements due to its growing use and constant development. For instance, Mexico has experienced some improvements in these last decades regarding aspects such as anti-arbitration injunctions, powers of the court to order interim measures, the scope of…
It was 8:45 am in Santiago de Chile on August 30, 2023, and the Centro de Arbitraje y Mediación de la Cámara de Comercio de Santiago’s – CAM Santiago venue was full for the seminar “Tendencies in Investment Arbitration in Latin-America: Current Issues and Challenges.” Among attendants were academics, practitioners, government officials, and arbitrators, who…
Another year ends with set records for investment arbitration in Latin America. ICSID reported that, out of the new forty-five registered cases, twenty-one were brought against Latin American and Caribbean states (the annual report covers the fiscal year from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023). In other words, almost fifty percent of the new…
Bill no. 2.925/2023 (“Bill”) is intended to amend federal law no. 6.385/1976 (regulating the Brazilian stock market and that created the Comissão de Valores Mobiliários, the Brazilian Securities and Exchange Commission – “CVM”) and law no. 6.404/1976 (regulating joint-stock companies/business corporations). The goal is to ensure transparency in class arbitration proceedings involving stock market investors,…
The uncertainties faced by investors and stakeholders in 2023 was intensified by the notable shift in Latin America’s political regimes. The emergence of left-wing electoral victories echoed the political landscape of the 2000s, marked by ambiguity, volatility, and political risk. In the realm of arbitration, several jurisdictions have undergone significant developments. Mexico and Chilean arbitration…
On October 6, 2023, an arbitral tribunal composed by Diego P. Fernández Arroyo (President), Christian Leathley, and Marcelo Kohen (the “Tribunal” or “Arbitral Tribunal”) issued the final award in the dispute between Michael Anthony Lee-Chin (“Claimant”), a Jamaican national, and the Dominican Republic (“Respondent”) (the “Award”). The dissenting opinion of Professor Marcelo G. Kohen accompanied…
