Should a foreign investor opt for ICSID arbitration or UNCITRAL arbitration when a choice exists? Foreign investors involved in a dispute with a host State of investment are often able to choose between initiating ICSID arbitration under the ICSID Convention or ad hoc arbitration under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules in order to resolve their investment dispute. This […]
ICSID Arbitration
Enforcing an Investment Arbitration Award: When States Refuse to Pay
Enforcing an investment arbitration award against a sovereign State is not easy. It is particularly hard when that State firmly refuses to pay after losing an arbitration. Such a situation is obviously problematic for an investor. An investor must spend considerable resources, usually in the realm of millions of dollars, prior to receiving a favorable […]
States as Claimants in Investment Arbitration
In classic investment arbitration disputes, an investor brings claims against a host country under an investment treaty, an investment contract, or both. Since only States are parties to bilateral investment treaties, they have obligations under these agreements. These treaties aim to give rights to foreign investors. Thus, the growth of investment disputes over the last […]
ICSID Caseload Statistics
Recently, the International Centre of Settlement of International Dispute (“ICSID”) announced a new case record.[1] According to its caseload statistics published on 2 February 2018, the institution registered a record of 53 claims over 2017. Out of these cases, 49 were submitted under the ICSID Convention, while 4 were conducted under the ICSID Additional Facility rules. The […]
ICSID Denunciation – Should Investors be Worried?
Arbitration is only possible when both the claimant and the respondent have consented to it. In Investment Treaty Arbitration specifically, an investor can “perfect consent” by accepting an offer to arbitrate in an investment treaty. This article explores the significance of ICSID Denunciation in light of Fábrica de Vidrios Los Andes, C.A. & Owens-Illinois de Venezuela, C.A. […]
International Arbitration in Kyrgyzstan
International arbitration in the ex-Soviet Republic of Kyrgyzstan, as was the case in most ex-Soviet republics, was not a popular dispute resolution mechanism until 15 years ago. Today, international arbitration in Kyrgyzstan is governed by the Law on Arbitration Courts (2002). The Kyrgyz Law on Arbitration Courts is a modern law largely based on the UNCITRAL Model […]
State Counterclaim in Investment Arbitration
An ICSID arbitral tribunal awarded approximately USD 40 million in damages to Ecuador for the foreign investor’s liability for the costs of restoring the environment in an area concerned by the investment. This award of a counterclaim in investment arbitration was made by an arbitral tribunal composed of Gabrielle Kaufmann-Kohler, Brigitte Stern and Stephen Drymer in […]
Consent in Investment Arbitration
Investment arbitration, like any arbitration, is a creature of contract. A party submitting a case to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (the “Centre”) therefore must ensure that their adversaries have consented to arbitrate. This article answers the ‘what, how, and when’ of consent in investment arbitration. What is “Consent”? Article 25(1) of […]
The Cost of Investment Arbitration: UNCITRAL, ICSID Proceedings and Third-Party Funding
Party Costs in Investment Arbitration In a recent article by Global Arbitration Review, the second edition of a recent empirical study reveals that the cost of investment arbitration is unfortunately on the rise yet again. Since 2013, average party costs were a massive USD 7.41 million for claimants and USD 5.19 million for respondents. Before then, […]
