ITN – Investment Treaty News

SIAC Investment Arbitration Rules come into effect; new SCC rules include appendix on investment treaty disputes On January 1, 2017, the Investment Arbitration Rules of the Singapore Investment Arbitration Centre (SIAC) came into effect. Among the highlights are provisions on early dismissal of claims and defences, submissions by non-disputing parties and mandatory disclosure of third-party […]

Awards and Decisions

ICSID tribunal dismisses claims brought against Indonesia based on forged mining licences Churchill Mining PLC and Planet Mining Pty Ltd v. Republic of Indonesia, ICSID Case No. ARB/12/14 and ICSID Case No. ARB/12/40 Inaê Siqueira de Oliveira [*] After rendering separate decisions on jurisdiction¾one for the case brought by British company Churchill Mining PLC under the United […]

Resources and Events

Resources Treaty Shopping in International Investment Law By Jorun Baumgartner, Published by Oxford University Press, February 2017 The book examines the practice of treaty shopping—the strategic change of nationality or the strategic invocation of another nationality with the aim of accessing another investment treaty for purposes of investment arbitration—to investigate the challenges this practice poses […]

Treaty Shopping in International Investment Law

The book examines the practice of treaty shopping—the strategic change of nationality or the strategic invocation of another nationality with the aim of accessing another investment treaty for purposes of investment arbitration—to investigate the challenges this practice poses in investment arbitration.

News in Brief

(English) Trump election affects mega-regional negotiations including TTIP, TPP and RCEP

Brazil and India initial Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT); text yet to be published

CETA signed; Canada and European Union to “work expeditiously” on creating a Multilateral Investment Court

Awards and Decisions

(English) Venezuela to Pay Us$1 Billion For Expropriating Canadian Mining Company’s Investment

ICSID Tribunal dismisses MFN Clause in WTO GATS as a means of importing Senegal’s consent to arbitration from third party BIT

PCA tribunal deemed acts of Polish Agricultural Property Agency not attributable to Poland

Claimant not considered Investor due to interpretation of “Seat” under Cyprus–Montenegro BIT

Ecuador’s Levy on extraordinary oil profits at a 99% rate has breached Murphy’s legitimate expectations, decides PCA tribunal

Ecuador ordered by PCA tribunal to pay $24 million to Canadian Mining Company

News in Brief

(English) US$50 billion awards against Russia in Yukos Cases are set aside by Dutch Court

TTIP draft to be prepared by July; ISDS being built based on both EU and US proposals

China – US BIT: ISDS to be included; ongoing negotiations on negative lists

Three mining disputes: The first investment disputes against Colombia come to light

Canada-European Union CETA re-concluded in February to incorporate the EU ICS proposal

Second ICSID claim filed against Uruguay; Philip Morris decision still pending

Singapore International Arbitration centre releases investment arbitration rules

US$50 billion awards against Russia in Yukos cases are set aside by Dutch court

(English) In a judgment dated April 20, 2016, the District Court of The Hague, in the Netherlands, set aside awards that had ordered Russia to pay US$50 billion to the shareholders of Yukos, a bankrupt oil company.

TTIP draft to be prepared by July; ISDS being built based on both EU and U.S. proposals

(English) Officials from the European Union and the United States gathered in Brussels for the 12th round of negotiations over the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) from February 22 to 26.

China–United States BIT: ISDS to be included; ongoing negotiations on negative lists

(English) Since 2008, China and the United States have undergone 24 negotiation rounds for a bilateral investment treaty (BIT).

Three mining disputes: the first investment disputes against Colombia come to light

(English) On February 19, 2016, Cosigo Resources (Canada) and Tobie Mining and Energy (United States) submitted an arbitration request against Colombia under the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) concluded by Colombia with the United States and Canada.

Canada–European Union CETA re-concluded in February to incorporate EU ICS proposal

(English) Responding to EU requests, Canadian and EU officials reopened negotiations of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) concluded in 2014 to reformulate the agreement’s investor–state dispute settlement (ISDS) clause.

Second ICSID claim filed against Uruguay; Philip Morris decision still pending

(English) On March 24, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) registered (Case No. ARB/16/9) a request for arbitration filed by U.S. telecom company Italba against Uruguay.

Singapore International Arbitration Centre releases investment arbitration rules

(English) On February 1, 2016, the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) released draft rules tailored to investment arbitration (Draft SIAC Rules), to be finalized in May following public consultation.

Awards and Decisions

(English) ICSID Tribunal Awards Damages for Venezuela’s Indirect Expropriation of Steel Industry Investment

The first ICSID case against Guinea is dismissed for lack of Jurisdiction

Slovenia is condemned to pay 20 million euros in damagesand US$10 million in costs to Croatian National Electric Company

The only known investment treaty arbitration against Equatorial Guinea fails on jurisdictional grounds

ICSID tribunal orders Zimbabwe to return expropriated farms

The first ICSID case against Guinea is dismissed for lack of jurisdiction

(English) In a decision dated December 21, 2015, a tribunal at the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) ruled that it lacked jurisdiction to hear a case brought by Société civile immobilière de Gaëta (Gaëta) against Guinea under the Guinean Investment Code.

Slovenia is condemned to pay €20 million in damages and US$10 million in costs to Croatian national electric company

(English) An award rendered on December 17, 2015 by an arbitral tribunal constituted under the auspices of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) added a new—and apparently final—chapter to a nearly 20-year-old conflict between the governments of Croatia and Slovenia over the supply of electricity generated by the Krško Nuclear Power Plant (Krško NPP), located in Slovenia.