In General Dynamics United Kingdom Ltd v State of Libya [2021] UKSC 22 the Supreme Court (the “Court“), by a majority of 3 to 2, held that s12(1) State Immunity Act 1978 (the “SIA“) contains a “mandatory and exclusive” procedure for the service of documents instituting court proceedings on a State through the Foreign, Commonwealth … Read more

Sovereign wealth funds invest across a range of asset classes and engage in capital markets and loan transactions. Their engagement in these activities is consistent with that of any other commercial actor. However, the connection between a sovereign wealth fund and the State by which it has been created raises the question of whether the … Read more

In a helpful clarification of the rules surrounding the registration of International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID”) awards in England and Wales, the English High Court has ruled in Union Fenosa Gas SA v Egypt [2020] EWHC 1723 (Comm) here, that service of a claim form on a state is not required under … 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 United Nations Commission on International Trade Law’s (“UNCITRAL“) Working Group III (Investor-State Dispute Settlement Reform) (“WGIII“)​ has published its report (the “Report“) on the work conducted between 20 and 24 January 2020 during its resumed 38th session. The Report provides details about the discussions around the following issues: (i) whether the investor-state dispute settlement … Read more

The English Court (the “Court“) has dismissed an application by Ukraine to set aside a court order permitting Russian investor, PAO Tatneft, to enforce an arbitral award against Ukraine.  Ukraine argued that it was immune from the Court’s jurisdiction by virtue of the State Immunity Act 1978. The Court found that Ukraine had not waived … Read more

In the recent decision of Certain Underwriters At Lloyds London v Syrian Arab Republic & Ors [2018] EWHC 385 (Comms) the English Commercial Court (the Court) considered the difficulties which may be encountered in trying to serve on a State. The Court also considered whether a state had submitted to the jurisdiction of a foreign … Read more

Wednesday 6 July 2016, 12.45 – 1.45pm BST States are increasingly involved in disputes arising from commercial transactions and arbitrations with investors under various bilateral and multilateral investment treaties.  Resolving a dispute with a state is only the first step – more significant is the ability to enforce the award. In this webinar, our speakers will … Read more