The US-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement (USMCA), the replacement to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), entered into force on 1 July 2020. Background On 24 April, 2020 the United States Trade Representative issued a press release confirming that all three NAFTA member states had notified the other parties, in writing, that they had completed the … Read more
India has in the past several years become involved in a considerable number of investment treaty claims by foreign investors. While public data is not always available or accurate, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (“UNCTAD”) website, lists more than a dozen pending cases where India is respondent. This number seems to have … Read more
On 9 June 2020 the Republic of Djibouti became the 155th state to ratify the ICSID Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States (“the ICSID Convention”) following the depositing of its instrument of ratification with the World Bank. The ratification follows Djibouti’s signing of the Convention in April … Read more
On 5 May 2020, 23 Member States of the European Union (the “EU”) signed an Agreement to terminate the Bilateral Investment Treaties (“BITs”) between them (the “Termination Agreement”). Read more
In a recently surfaced judgment, the Malaysian High Court in Government of Malaysia v Nurhima Kiram Fornan & Ors (Originating Summons No. BKI-24NCvC-190/12-2019 (HC2)) for the first time granted an anti-arbitration injunction to restrain foreign arbitration proceedings on the basis of sovereign immunity. In a post on our Arbitration Notes blog, Peter Godwin and Daniel … Read more
On 1 May 2020, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID“) and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (“UNCITRAL“) released the long-awaited Draft Code of Conduct for Adjudicators in Investor-State Dispute Settlement (the “Code”). The Code was prepared jointly by the Secretariats of ICSID and UNCITRAL, and seeks to address a … Read more
In the recent case of Koza Limited, Mr Ipek v Koza Altin Isletmeleri AS [2020] EWHC 654 (Ch) (subscription required) the English High Court granted an injunction against a UK-based company, Koza Limited, restraining it from providing funding for an ICSID arbitration brought by another UK corporation, Ipek Investment Limited (IIL), against Turkey. Background Facts … Read more
In Micula and others (Respondents/Cross-Appellants) v Romania (Appellant/Cross-Respondent) [2020] UKSC 5 the UK Supreme Court (the “SC”) found that the duty of sincere cooperation under EU law does not preclude enforcement of an ICSID Convention (the “Convention”) award against Romania (the “Award”). In what is the enforcement stage of the long-running and well-known saga of … Read more
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about an unprecedented level of state action as governments around the world make difficult decisions in response to the spread of the virus. Over the past few months this has resulted in a variety of measures in different countries, including the suspension of contractual rights, social distancing regulations, the requisitioning … Read more
