Key Duties of International Investment Arbitrators


Book Description

This book critically analyses how arbitration cases, institutional rules and emerging codes of conduct in the international arbitration sector​ have ​dealt with​ a series of​ key​ arbitrator duties to date. In addition, it ​offers a range of feasible and well-grounded proposals regarding ​investment arbitrators’ duties in the future. The following aspects are examined in depth: the duty of disclosure the duty to investigate​ the duty of diligence​ and integrity​, which in turn may be divided into temporal availability, a non-delegation of responsibilities, and adhering to appropriate behaviour​ the duty of confidentiality, and other duties such as monitoring arbitration costs, or continuous training​. Investment arbitration is currently undergoing sweeping changes. The EU proposal to create a Multilateral Investment Court incorporates a number of ground-breaking developments with regard to arbitrators. Whether this new model of permanent “members of the court” will ever become a reality, or whether the classical ex-parte arbitrator system will manage to retain its dominance in the investment arbitration milieu, this book is based on the assumption that there is a current need to re-examine and rethink the main duties of investment arbitrators. Apart from being the first monograph to analyse these​ duties in detail, the book will spark a crucial debate among international scholars and practitioners. It is essential to identify arbitrators’ duties and find consensus on how they should be reshaped in the near future, so that these central figures in investment arbitration can reinforce the legitimacy of a system that is currently in crisis.




Building International Investment Law


Book Description

This volume celebrates the first fifty years of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) by presenting the landmark cases that have been decided under its auspices. These cases have addressed every aspect of investment disputes: jurisdictional thresholds; the substantive obligations found in investment treaties, contracts, and legislation; questions of general international law; and a number of novel procedural issues. Each chapter, written by an expert on the chapter’s particular focus, looks at an international investment law topic through the lens of one or more of these leading cases, analyzing what the case held, how it has been applied, and its overall significance to the development of international investment law. These topics include: - applicable law; - res judicata in investor-State arbitration; - notion of investment; - investor nationality; - consent to arbitration; - substantive standards of treatment; - consequences of corruption in investor-State arbitration; - State defenses - counter-claims; - assessment of damages and cost considerations; - ICSID Arbitration Rule 41(5) objections; - mass claims, consolidation and parallel proceedings; - provisional measures; - arbitrator challenges; - transparency and amicus curiae; and - annulment. Because the law of international investment continues to grow in importance in an ever globalizing world, this book is more than a fitting way to mark the past fifty years and to welcome the next fifty years of development. It will prove both educational for practitioners new to the field and informative for seasoned investment lawyers. Moreover, the book itself is a landmark that will be of great value to professionals, scholars and students interested in international investment law.




Arbitration Under International Investment Agreements


Book Description

Arbitration Under International Investment Agreements: A Guide to the Key Issues provides a comprehensive analysis of the main issues that arise in investor-state arbitration. The contributing authors take the reader through the intricacies of this procedure before analyzing the main jurisdictional and substantive issues that confront arbitrators. The book concludes with a reflection on the role of precedent in investment arbitration. A diverse group of renowned experts in the field provide comprehensive coverage, making Arbitration Under International Investment Agreements a valuable resource for anyone working in or studying this field of law.




The Selection and Removal of Arbitrators in Investor-State Dispute Settlement


Book Description

The Selection and Removal of Arbitrators in Investor-State Dispute Settlement examines two essential features in investor-state dispute resolution: how arbitrators are selected and removed. Both topics have received increasing scrutiny and criticism, that have in turn generated calls for reforms. In its first part, Professor Chiara Giorgetti, an expert in international arbitration, explains the selection of arbitrators procedurally and comparatively under the most-often used arbitration rules. She then reviews critically arbitrators’ necessary and desirable qualities, and addresses some important and related policy issues, such as diversity and repeat appointments. In her work, she also includes an assessment of the calls to review how arbitrators are appointed, and specifically the proposal by the European Commission to create a permanent tribunal to resolve international investment disputes, the UNCITRAL Working Groups III Reform Process and the rules amendment proposal undertaken by the Secretariat of the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes. In its second part, this monograph examines how arbitrators can be removed and reviews first the applicable provisions, under a variety of arbitration rules, to remove arbitrators who fail to possess the necessary qualities. It then also reviews the relevant case-law on challenges. The monograph assesses appointments and removals in a multifaceted and comprehensive way, and includes a critical assessment of the reasons and calls for reform of the ISDS system.




Substantive Law in Investment Treaty Arbitration


Book Description

This new edition of what has rapidly become the pre-eminent work on the role of municipal law in investment treaty arbitration is justified not only by the accelerating appearance of investment treaty awards but also by the continuing, serious flaws in the application of international law by investment treaty arbitral tribunals. As a matter of international law, arbitrators need to be attentive to the circumstances where municipal law supplies the necessary substantive legal rule. They will find this book to be the best guide to this complex challenge. The author has maintained the overall structure of the first edition and added a new chapter on Article 42 of the ICSID Convention. Certain descriptions and arguments have been rethought and revised to clarify their significance and their applicability. The treatment focuses on the role of municipal law in providing the substance for concepts such as contracts, property rights, and shareholders’ rights, which are relevant in the international investment treaty context but are not regulated under international law. Among the complex questions considered are the following: - If the application of international law requires a renvoi to municipal law, how should that renvoi be conducted? - In investment disputes, what role, if any, should municipal law have in assessing State attribution under international law? - Should shareholders receive compensation for damages suffered by their company due to a violation of an international obligation vis-à-vis the company? - Does a contractual right exist to foreign investment ‘property’? - Under what conditions may a violation of municipal law become internationally wrongful? - May foreign investors rely on ‘expectations’ as an autonomous source of rights in investment treaty disputes? - Does an alleged breach of an umbrella clause transform a breach of contract claim covered by municipal law into an international law claim? The chapters answer these and many other questions in extraordinary depth, drawing on detailed analyses of the issues and implications posed by major relevant cases and arbitral decisions. The author’s analysis of the unavoidable interaction of municipal law and international law in investment treaty arbitration – and the consequences stemming from rejecting the application of municipal law when relevant – will continue to prove of immeasurable value to arbitrators, arbitration counsel, corporate counsel, and scholars of international law.




International Investment Law and Arbitration


Book Description

A new edition connecting extracts from arbitral decisions, treaties and scholarly works with concise, up-to-date and reliable commentary.




The Legitimacy of Investment Arbitration


Book Description

International investment arbitration remains one of the most controversial areas of globalisation and international law. This book provides a fresh contribution to the debate by adopting a thoroughly empirical approach. Based on new datasets and a range of quantitative, qualitative and computational methods, the contributors interrogate claims and counter-claims about the regime's legitimacy. The result is a nuanced picture about many of the critiques lodged against the regime, whether they be bias in arbitral decision-making, close relationships between law firms and arbitrators, absence of arbitral diversity, and excessive compensation. The book comes at a time when several national and international initiatives are under way to reform international investment arbitration. The authors discuss and analyse how the regime can be reformed and ow a process of legitimation might occur.




Introduction to Investor-State Arbitration


Book Description

Today thousands of investors act globally in markets providing services, technology or capital in countries all around the world. This activity can be peacefully accomplished when both the investor and the host State know that the disputes will be resolved under the aegis of the investor-State arbitration regime, wherein an investor is provided with a direct right of action against a State, most commonly stemming from a bilateral or multilateral investment treaty. This book approaches the substantive and sometimes difficult concepts of investor-State arbitration in a clear and concise explanatory fashion. In the course of acquainting the reader with the basic legal concepts and policies of the regime, the authors address such issues as the following: • consent to jurisdiction; • State responsibility; • possible conflict of interests; • mechanisms for reviewing an award; • damages and costs; and • enforcement. The book examines a number of arbitration procedures arising from various perspectives with differing underlying assumptions while highlighting important cases. Given that investor-State arbitration is now under the public watch and facing many challenges, this remarkably clear and concise overview of the regime will prove to be of great value to in-house counsel and other practitioners, as well as to government policymakers and students.x`




The Investor-State Dispute Settlement System


Book Description

Investor-State disputes are increasing and damage awards are often significant. It is thus no surprise that the investor-State dispute settlement (ISDS) system has come under scrutiny. Perceptions have arisen that ISDS is inconsistent, lacks transparency, and is simply unfair. This book delves into the ongoing worldwide debate and discussions regarding the ISDS system. Drawing contributors from around the world, the authors provide insights on critical topics and address the key question facing the ISDS system and the international community it serves: Should the present ISDS system be reformed, replaced, or simply remain as is? The contributors represent points of view ranging from academia to practice to governmental entities, addressing such topics as: the possible consequences of wholesale replacement or elimination of the current ISDS system; mediation as an alternative to resolve ISDS disputes; the creation of a multinational investment court or appellate review mechanism; lack of an early dismissal mechanism to eliminate meritless claims; issues regarding arbitrators, including their appointment and ethical obligations; how investors may retain their right to pursue claims for violations of investment protection following termination of an agreement; a State’s right to assert a counterclaim against an investor-claimant; the role of ISDS in promoting and protecting renewable energy production; the liability of State-controlled entities; the effects and implications of third-party funding; the duty to mitigate damages in the light of excessive damages awards; and improvements and issues relating to post-award enforcement, duration, and cost of ISDS. This book considers the ongoing deliberations and reform measures proposed by UNCITRAL’s Working Group III and provides insights into how several geographic regions and economic cooperation areas have sought to address the question of reform of the ISDS system, including the European Union, the Middle East, and the new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. With its much-needed and deeply informed balancing of investor and State rights and duties, this book will be welcomed by all who practise in the ISDS field, including arbitrators, State governments and non-governmental organizations, regional economic organizations, and international investors.




Contemporary and Emerging Issues on the Law of Damages and Valuation in International Investment Arbitration


Book Description

Damages and other forms of redress are the object of nearly every international investment dispute. Given the financial stakes in these cases, compensation is a key concern for both foreign investors and States. The increasingly large sums awarded and the growing complexity of claims call for a renewed analysis of legal and valuation concepts related to damages. Contemporary and Emerging Issues on the Law of Damages and Valuation in International Investment Arbitration, edited by Christina L. Beharry, examines a broad range of damages topics, building on basic principles and surveying current developments to identify trends in the jurisprudence. A central contribution of this book is its exploration of cutting-edge issues dominating a new generation of investment awards and the interconnectedness of damages with other areas of international investment law. This volume brings together leading practitioners, experts, and academics with extensive experience working on issues related to the law of damages and the quantification of compensation. Readers are provided with a deeper understanding of legal and valuation principles that are often the source of intense debate in international investment cases.