Australia, Energy Charter Treaty, Enforcement, ICSID Convention, Intra-EU ISDS, Investor-State arbitration, State Immunity

, (Banco Chambers)/ /Leave a comment

In June 2018, an International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) tribunal issued an award against Spain under the Energy Charter Treaty. The successful claimants then commenced proceedings in Australia seeking recognition and enforcement under the ICSID Convention. Spain responded that it had not submitted to, and therefore had immunity from, the jurisdiction of…

England, Third party funding

, , (Trilegal)/ /Leave a comment

Third-Party Funding (“TPF”) has emerged as a parallel industrial complex in the modern dispute resolution landscape. Parties routinely enter into Arbitration/ Litigation Funding Agreements (“LFA”) with third parties, based on both conditional fees and damages-based remuneration models, seeking financial services in relation to advocacy, litigation, or claims management. The increasing popularity of the industry can…

Consumer disputes, England

(Slaughter and May)/ /Leave a comment

The recent case of Payward Inc v Chechetkin [2023] EWHC 1780 (Comm) represents a rare example of English courts refusing to enforce an arbitral award on public policy grounds. The award in question was rendered against Mr Chechetkin, a UK-domiciled lawyer who suffered significant losses trading on the Claimant’s cryptocurrency platform. The English Commercial Court…

Authentication, Enforcement, New York Convention, Set aside an international arbitral award, Vietnam

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A recent decision of the Hanoi People’s Court, Decision No. 12/2023/QD-PPT dated 4 July 2023 (“Decision 12”), held that a power-of-attorney (“POA”) signed outside of Vietnam and authorizing the signing and filing of an arbitration in Vietnam must have received consular authentication. In doing so, the Court clarifies the approach taken by the Ho Chi…

Australia, Climate change, Investment, Investment Arbitration

(Herbert Smith Freehills)/ /Leave a comment
Herbert Smith Freehills

The recently reported investment treaty claim by Singapore-based mining company Zeph Investments (“Zeph”) against Australia appears to be the latest in investor-State dispute claims arising out of climate change-related measures introduced by States. The claim was first disclosed on 10 July 2023 by the Attorney General’s Department of Australia in response to a question on…

Appointment of arbitrators, Arbitration Agreement, Arbitration clause, India

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The question of the validity of unilateral arbitral appointments in the Indian scenario has risen above the surface yet again. The Delhi High Court recently, in Margo Networks Pvt. Ltd. and Another v Railtel Corporation of India Ltd (“Margo”), reiterated the conflict in the existing legal position and the need for finality on this issue….

Uncategorized

(University of Marburg)/ /Leave a comment

On 29 June 2023, the Conference focusing on “Convergence of Arbitration and Litigation“, organized by the German Federal Ministry of Justice (“BMJ”) and the German Arbitration Institute (“DIS”) took place at the Karlsruhe castle. Around 100 attendees from various legal professions and three panels discussed whether the two dispute resolution mechanisms of arbitration and litigation are…

Arbitrability, Dissenting opinions, Fair and Equitable Treatment, Investment Disputes, Investment law, Investment protection, Investment Treaties, Latin America, Panama

(Morgan & Morgan Legal)/ /Leave a comment

Investment treaty arbitration tribunals have addressed issues surrounding State intervention and States’ regulatory freedom time and time again, consequently creating guiding precedent regarding State conduct that could constitute breaches of the fair and equitable treatment (“FET”) or expropriation standards. However, recently, an investment treaty arbitration tribunal not only had to deal with issues surrounding the…

Damages, Non-pecuniary remedies, Remedies

(Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer)/ /Leave a comment
Institute for Transnational Arbitration (ITA)

The 35th Annual ITA Workshop on “Remedies in International Arbitration: Wielding Arbitral Power for Effective Redress” took place in Austin, Texas from 15 to 16 June 2023. Co-chaired by Dr. Diane A. Desierto (Professor, University of Notre Dame Law School), Rachael D. Kent (Partner, WilmerHale, Washington, D.C.), and Thomas Voisin (Partner, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart &…

Albania, Arbitration Act, UNCITRAL Model Law

, (Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer)/ /Leave a comment

For years, Albania did not have a self-standing arbitration law or even any legislative provisions specifically on arbitration. Until 2013, the Albanian Civil Procedure Code did contain some provisions on arbitration, but these were repealed in 2013. On 6 July 2023, after several years of discussions and drafts, the Albanian Parliament adopted an arbitration law…

Journal of International Arbitration

(WilmerHale & Queen Mary University of London)/ /Leave a comment

We are happy to inform you that the latest issue of the journal is now available and includes the following contributions:   Gary B. Born & Sonya Ebermann, A New Patent Mediation and Arbitration Centre for Europe With the Unitary Patent (UP) and Unified Patent Court, some Member States of the European Union are creating…

International Arbitration Procedures, Investor-State arbitration, ISDS Reform

(George Mason University)/ /Leave a comment

In May 2023, more than thirty members of the U.S. Congress sent a letter to the Biden administration, arguing that “[l]arge corporations have weaponized [investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS)] to benefit their own interests” and that “the broken ISDS system has time and time again worked in favor of big business interests.” This criticism against ISDS…

Arbitration institution, Interviews with Our Editors, VIAC, Vietnam

(Clifford Chance Asia)/ /Leave a comment
Vietnam International Arbitration Centre (VIAC Vietnam)

Mr. Vu Anh Duong is the Secretary General of the Vietnam International Arbitration Centre (“VIAC“), which is the leading Vietnamese arbitration and mediation institution. Mr. Duong has contributed significantly to the development of arbitration in Vietnam in various ways; in addition to his role with the VIAC, Mr. Duong has served as a member of various drafting committees dealing…

Emergency Arbitrator, Enforcement, Interim measures, Italy

(Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer) and / /Leave a comment

The recent reform of Italian arbitration law, which went into effect on 28 February 2023, has finally put an end to the historical prohibition for Italian-seated sole arbitrators and arbitral tribunals to grant interim measures. This ban was one of the most atypical features of Italian arbitration law (which is still found only in very…

Case Management, Hearings, Interviews with Our Editors, Singapore, Virtual Case Administration, Virtual hearings

(Peter & Kim)/ /Leave a comment

Ban Jiun Ean is the Chief Executive of Maxwell Chambers, the world’s first integrated dispute resolution center in the heart of Singapore. Maxwell Chambers assembled arbitral institutions, service providers, and legal practitioners under the same roof, making the Chamber a one-stop shop for customers in a facility equipped with best-in-class hearing facilities and state-of-the-art supporting…

Journal of International Arbitration

(WilmerHale & Queen Mary University of London)/ /Leave a comment

We are happy to inform you that the latest issue of the journal is now available and includes the following contributions:   Jeff Waincymer, ‘Much Ado About . . . The Law of the Arbitration Agreement: Who Wants to Know and for What Legitimate Purpose?’ Common law cases and commentators have debated whether the law…

ISDS, Korea, Tax, Taxation

(PwC; Lazarski University)/ /Leave a comment

The Lone Star v. Korea (Lone Star) Award issued on 30 August 2022 is one of the latest investment awards in tax-related investment treaty disputes and the first one in which a tribunal, inter alia, dealt with the application of an anti-tax avoidance substance over form doctrine (SOFD) under a double taxation treaty (DTT). The…

Achmea, Energy Charter Treaty, Enforcement, Intra-EU BITs, Intra-EU Investment Arbitration, Intra-EU ISDS, UK

(Fietta LLP)/ /Leave a comment

The English High Court’s judgment in Infrastructure Services v Spain is one of the most important developments of the past year in relation to the enforcement of intra-EU investment awards. It arises out of the Luxembourgish and Dutch claimants’ successful ICSID arbitration against Spain under the Energy Charter Treaty (“ECT”), in which the tribunal held…

Arbitration, International Arbitration Procedures, Multi-Party Interim Appeal Arbitration, WTO

(Yulchon LLC)/ /Leave a comment

In response to the shutdown of the WTO Appellate Body in 2019, a subset of WTO Members entered into the Multi-Party Interim Appeal Arbitration Arrangement (“MPIA”). The MPIA has been in effect since 30 April 2020. Although it is an “interim” arrangement that will only function as long as the Appellate Body is inoperative, it…

Arbitration Agreements, Brazil, Brazilian Arbitration Act, Brazilian Superior Court of Justice, Hardship, Latin America

(BMA - Barbosa Müssnich Aragão Advogados) and / /Leave a comment

On 25 October 2022, the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice (“SCJ”) upheld a decision that suspended the filing of a proof of claim in bankruptcy proceedings and, consequently, prevented the plaintiff from participating in the general meeting of creditors (see, Appeal to the SCJ n. 1.774.649, 25 October 2022, Amapari Energia S.A. v. Zamin Amapá…

Appeal, Arbitration Procedure, Australia, Bifurcation of proceedings, Estoppel, Functus Officio, Interim Award, Set aside an arbitral award

(Level Twenty Seven Chambers) and (LK Law)/ /1 Comment
ACICA 45

In a recent decision, the Supreme Court of Western Australia (“WA”) Court of Appeal confirmed that courts have the conclusive authority to determine the jurisdiction of arbitral tribunals. The Commercial Arbitration Act 2012 (WA) (the “Act”) confers competence upon arbitral tribunals to determine their own jurisdiction. However, courts retain authority to review questions of jurisdiction….

Arbitral Secretaries, Belgium

, (Houthoff)/ /Leave a comment

In its decision of 24 April 2023, the Belgian Supreme Court upheld the Brussels Court’s judgment of 17 June 2021 (discussed here), thereby confirming that arbitral secretaries can assist in drafting arbitral awards, provided that the arbitral tribunal is still calling the shots. This post explains how this recent decision (discussed here) reflects the doctrine’s…

ADR, Arbitration Act, Brazil, Brazilian Arbitration Act, Emergency Arbitrator, ICC, Latin America

(JBLEE Advogados)/ /Leave a comment

In 2023, the ICC International Court of Arbitration (“ICC Court”) celebrated 100 years as the world’s leading arbitral institution. To celebrate this milestone, on 25 May 2023, the ICC Court and the National Committee of Brazil (“ICC Brazil”) organized the First ICC Arbitration Conference in the South of Brazil (“ICC South Conference”). The ICC South…

ITA Arbitration Report

(Notre Dame Law School), (Stockholm University), and / /Leave a comment

The Institute of Transnational Arbitration (“ITA”), in collaboration with the ITA Board of Reporters, is happy to inform you that the latest ITA Arbitration Report was published: a free email subscription service is available at KluwerArbitration.com, delivering timely reports on awards, cases, legislation and current developments from over 60 countries and 12 institutions. To get your…