ICSID RELEASES 2021 ANNUAL REPORT FOR RECORD FINANCIAL YEAR

The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID“) recently published its Annual Report for FY2021 (available here), concluding a financial year with multiple record achievements amid the Covid-19 pandemic, including a record number of cases registered and the largest number of cases ever administered at ICSID in a single fiscal year.  We have summarised … Read more

OVERVIEW OF THE LATEST COURT PRACTICE ON THE RUSSIAN SANCTIONS-RELATED AMENDMENTS—IS WINTER COMING?

This analysis was first published on Lexis®PSL on 29 October 2021 and can be found here (subscription required). Ivan Teselkin, partner, Maria Dolotova, of counsel, Alexander Gridasov, senior associate, and Sergei Eremin, senior associate, of Herbert Smith Freehills provide an overview of Russian court decisions on the impact of recent amendments to Russian law relating … Read more

UNCTAD PUBLISHES REPORT ON INVESTOR-STATE DISPUTE SETTLEMENT CASES IN 2020

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (“UNCTAD“) has recently published its report (available here) on investor-state dispute settlement (“ISDS“) cases in 2020 (“Report“). The Report confirms that in 2020, investors initiated at least 68 publicly known ISDS cases pursuant to various international investment agreements (“IIAs“). This marks an increase in the number of … Read more

ARBITRATION, BUSINESS, AND HUMAN RIGHTS

Ten years ago this summer, the United Nations Human Rights Council unanimously endorsed the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (the “UNGPs”). The UNGPs are perhaps the most prominent manifestation of an accelerating global trend toward accounting for a legal or quasi-legal obligation on the part of corporations to conduct business in a manner that respects … Read more

ICSID RELEASES FIFTH WORKING PAPER ON ICSID RULES REVISION: THE LAST CHANGES BEFORE THE FINAL VOTE?

On June 15, 2021, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID“) Secretariat published its Fifth Working Paper on Proposals for Amendment of the ICSID Rules (“WP5“), featuring the proposals for amended ICSID rules on arbitration. The proposals build upon the suggested amended rules in Working Paper 4 (“WP4“), and address issues such as … Read more