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Back To The Eternal Debate Of Mfn And Dispute Settlement: A Case Comment On Ics V. Republic Of Argentina, Antoine Martin

Antoine Martin

Most-Favoured Nation (MFN) clauses and their possible extension to dispute settlement mechanisms are at the heart of a significant debate in international investments law. This debate is very lively but it is currently unsettled, as demonstrated by persisting disagreements between opposite Schools of thoughts and multiple inconsistencies in arbitral decisions. MFN clauses were reconsidered recently following a claim brought by ICS Inspection and Control Services Limited against Argentina before the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA). The PCA arbitrators rendered a decision in February 2011 in which jurisdiction was rejected together with the idea that a MFN can be extended to …

International Commercial Arbitrators' Approaches To Contractual Interpretation, Joshua D H Karton

Joshua Karton

This article considers the available international arbitral awards that involve interpretation of a contract. It divides the awards according to the applicable substantive law, and concludes that international commercial arbitrators generally follow the interpretive rules prescribed by the laws of civil law jurisdictions, but sometimes depart from common law interpretive methods. When international arbitrators depart from the applicable law, or when they apply general principles of international law or act as amiables compositeurs, they tend to follow a civil law approach. They see discerning the true (subjective) common intention of the parties as the goal of contractual interpretation, and while …

Conflict Of Interests: Seeking A Way Forward On Publication Of International Arbitral Awards, Joshua D H Karton

Joshua Karton

There now appears to be general agreement that greater publication of awards would benefit the international commercial arbitration system, yet most awards remain unpublished. This article explains the current state of affairs by reference to the conflict between party and systemic interests. Since international arbitration is a private, consent-based system, party interests in keeping awards confidential are likely to trump systemic interests in publishing them—even if those systemic interests align with the long-term interests of commercial parties generally.

The conflict of interests not only explains why confidentiality of international arbitral awards remains the rule, it also points the way to …