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Unified National Legal Treatment Of International Commercial Arbitration: A Continuing Challenge, Horacio A Grigera Naon

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

The U.S. Proposal For An Intellectual Property Chapter In The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, Sean Flynn, Brook Baker, Margot Kaminski, Jimmy Koo

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

This article takes advantage of the breach in the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiation’s secrecy to contribute to a new and growing collection of published scholarship on leaked proposals for international intellectual property agreements as they are being negotiated. We begin with the general provisions of the agreement, which define its relationship to the multilateral system. We then progress to analysis of some of the most important copyright, patent and data protection, and enforcement sections of the proposal, before providing some concluding observations. Our ultimate conclusion is that the U.S. proposal, if adopted, would upset the current international framework balancing the interests …

Through The Looking Glass: Understanding Social Science Norms For Analyzing International Investment Law, Susan Franck, Calvin Garbin, Jenna Perkins

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

When social science methods are being employed in a new context — such as the assessment of international investment law — there is value in exploring the underlying assumptions and normative baselines of the enterprise. This article and response address critiques about the methodology of an article in the Harvard International Law Journal by: (1) describing the value of social science in international investment law; (2) replicating the research using new methodologies to conduct more than 20 new tests that were still unable to ascertain the existence of a reliable relationship between development status and outcomes on the basis of …

The Icsid Effect? Considering Potential Variations In Arbitration Awards, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

The legitimacy of the World Bank's dispute resolution body - The International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) - is a matter of heated debate. Some states have alleged that ICSID is biased, withdrawn from the ICSID Convention, and advocated creating alternative arbitration systems. Using pre-2007 archival data of the population of then- known arbitration awards, this Article quantitatively assesses whether ICSID arbitration awards were substantially different from arbitration awards rendered in other forums. The Article examines variation in the amounts claimed and outcomes reached to evaluate indicators of bias. The results indicated that there was no reliable …

Mandatory Arbitration Clauses In Employment Contracts And The Need For Meaningful Judicial Review, Elizabeth Roma

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Rationalizing Costs In Investment Treaty Arbitration, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

International investment and related disputes are on the rise. With national courts generally unavailable and difficulties resolving disputes through diplomacy, investment treaties give investors a right to seek redress and arbitrate directly with states. The costs of these investment treaty arbitrations - including the costs of lawyers for both sides, as well as administrative and tribunal expenses - are arguably substantial. This Article offers empirical research indicating that even partial costs could represent more than 10% of an average award. The data suggested a lack of certainty about total costs, which parties had ultimate liability for costs, and the justification …

Establishing Claims For Damages, Costs And Interest In International Arbitration, Sir Vivian Ramsey

American University International Law Review

No abstract provided.

Chapter 25. International Investment Arbitration: Winning, Losing And Why, Susan Franck, Karl P. Sauvant, Lisa Sachs, Ken Davies, Ruben Zandvliet, Gary Clyde Hufbauer, Laza Kekic, Nathan M. Jensen, Edmund J. Malesky, Reuven S. Avi-Yonah, Jose Guimon, Lorenzo Cotula, Christian Bellak, Markus Leibrecht, Terutomo Ozawa, Michael Mortimore, Carlos Razo, Premila Nazareth Satyanand, Gert Bruche, Anne Van Aaken, Jürgen Kurtz, Kathryn Gordon, Joachim Pohl, Veljko Fotak, William L. Megginson, Charles Kovacs, Mark Plotkin, David N. Fagan, Subrata Bhattacharjee, Armand Claude De Mestral, Jason Webb Yackee, Kevin P. Gallagher, Lauge N. Skovgaard Poulsen University College London, Hans Smit, Michael D. Nolan, Frederic G. Sourgens, Luke Eric Peterson, Gus Van Harten, Alexandre De Gramont

Contributions to Books

Succinct yet insightful reports are most welcome – especially in our era, distracted as it is by a rising tide of shallow commentary. For those who care about foreign direct investment (FDI), the premier reports are Columbia FDI Perspectives, published every few weeks by the Vale Columbia Center on Sustainable International Investment. Since the first issue (here republished as chapter 2) appeared in November 2008, the Perspectives have adhered to a format of about two pages, authored by a leading expert, on an FDI question of immediate interest. Consequently, there is no better way to keep abreast of changing trends …

Lawfare: A War Worth Fighting, Paul Williams

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Cohabitation And The Restatement (Third) Of Restitution & Unjust Enrichment, Candace Kovacic-Fleischer

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

The Restatement (Third) of Restitution & Unjust Enrichment clarified and modernized a field that had become muddled since the publication of the Restatement (First) in 1937. One area of modernization relates to the changes in law towards women, particularly changes in law toward female cohabitants. Published in 2011, the Restatement (Third) added a new Section 28, which rejected the view that it would be immoral for one cohabitant to bring suit against the other, and relaxed the restriction on recovery in unjust enrichment for "gratuitous" contributions. This Article reviews societal and legal changes for women since 1937 and notes that, …

Whose Dictionary Controls?: Recent Challenges To The Term "Investment" In Icsid Arbirtration, Joseph M. Boddicker

American University International Law Review

No abstract provided.

Special 301 And Access To Medicine In The Obama Administration, Sean Flynn

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

I. Introduction

This article examines the history and current use of the Special 301 program to restrict access to generic medicines in developing countries, specifically the 2009 and 2010 reports released under the Obama Administration. The news for access to medicines advocates is not good overall. Both reports continue the previous Administration’s policies of using Special 301 to promote Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (“TRIPS”) policies (“TRIPS-plus”) endangering access to medicines for millions of people worldwide. These policies violate not only the Obama Administration’s pledges to promote access to affordable medications in developing countries, but also U.S. commitments under …

Development And Outcomes Of Investment Treaty Arbitration, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

The legitimacy of investment treaty arbitration is a matter of heated debate. Asserting that arbitration is unfairly tilted toward the developed world, some countries have withdrawn from World Bank dispute resolution bodies or are taking steps to eliminate arbitration. In order to assess whether investment arbitration is the equivalent of tossing a two-headed coin to resolve investment disputes, this article explores the role of development status in arbitration outcome. It first presents descriptive, quantitative research about the developmental background of the presiding arbitrators who exert particular control over the arbitration process. The article then assesses how (1) the development status …

Cartel Price Controls Vs. Free Trade: A Study Of Proposals To Challenge Opec's Influence In The Oil Market Through Wto Dispute Settlement, Tim Carey

American University International Law Review

No abstract provided.

Legislative Updates , Rene Carballo

The Modern American

No abstract provided.

Judges Judging Judicial Candidates: Should Currently Serving Judges Participate In Commissions To Screen And Recommend Article Iii Candidates Below The Supreme Court Level?, Mary Clark

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

In the lead-up to the 2008 presidential election, the American Bar Association (ABA), among others, called upon the next president to reform the federal judicial selection process by using bipartisan commissions to screen and recommend Article III candidates for presidential nomination and Senate confirmation below the Supreme Court level. This proposal may well find support in the Obama administration, given the new president’s emphasis on bipartisan consensus-building and transparency of government operations. This Article addresses one question that the ABA and others have not: Should currently serving judges participate in bi-partisan commissions to screen and recommend Article III candidates below …

Challenges Facing Investment Disputes: Reconsidering Dispute Resolution In International Investment Agreements, Susan Franck, Karl P. Sauvant, Michael Chiswick-Patterson, Rainer Geiger, José E. Alvarez, M. Sornarajah, Patrick Juillard, Jeswald W. Salacuse, Giorgio Sacerdoti, Anna Joubin-Bret, Hugo Perezcano Díaz, Michael K. Tracton, Christoph Schreuer, Howard Mann, Katia Yannaca-Small, Barton Legum, Jan Paulsson, Asif H. Qureshi, Shandana Gulzar Khan, Christopher Brummer, Brian J. Rapier

Contributions to Books

This volume brings together significant contributions from leading voices in academia, the legal profession and government on the increasingly important topic of international investment and the legal system in which it operates. With the burgeoning size of international capital flows matched only by an explosion in international agreements intending to regulate the field, there is increasing potential for incoherence amongst and between treaties and arbitral decisions.

Appeals Mechanism in International Investment Disputes compiles, compares and contrasts the analysis and arguments of the leading scholars, practitioners and government officials on the future of the international investment law regime. Its special emphasis …

Challenges Facing Investment Disputes: Reconsidering Dispute Resolution In International Investment Agreements, Susan Franck

Contributions to Books

International investment and international investment agreements have experienced a particular level of growth in the past few decades. With that growth and the granting of affirmative dispute resolution rights to foreign investors, international investment conflict has become increasingly highlighted; and one particular methodology - namely investment treaty arbitration - has become particularly visible. Reliance on this single option for resolving conflict has a unique set of systemic implications. This chapter therefore takes a more systemic look at investment treaty conflict and, in an effort to provide an appropriate historical and doctrinal framework, approaches to dispute resolution broadly. It asks for …

Empirically Evaluating Claims About Investment Treaty Arbitration, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

With the blossoming of empirical legal scholarship, there is an increased appreciation for the insights it offers issues of international importance. One area that can benefit from such inquiry is the resolution of disputes from investment treaties, which affects international relations, implicates international legality of domestic government conduct, and puts millions of taxpayer dollars at risk. While suggesting there has been a "litigation explosion", commentators make untested assertions about investment treaty disputes. Little empirical work transparently explores this area, however. As the first research that explains its methodology and results, this article is a modest attempt to evaluate claims about …

Integrating Investment Treaty Conflict And Dispute Systems Design, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

With the debate on the renewal of the Trade Promotion Authority Act, the proper terms of investment treaties - including dispute resolution provisions - have become an issue of public scrutiny. In a so-called litigation explosion, investors resolve disputes against host governments through international arbitration mechanisms in investment treaties; and there is little evidence of reliance on other processes like mediation. This escalation has lead to a teething period where parties and non-parties have expressed divergent views as to the efficacy, efficiency and fairness of the dispute resolution process. With billions of dollars and sovereignty at stake, the dispute resolution …

Foreign Direct Investment, Investment Treaty Arbitration, And The Rule Of Law, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

In the last decade, there has been a surge in the number of multi-lateral and bilateral investment treaties governments have signed; meanwhile there have been dramatic increases in the amount of foreign direct investment (FDI); and, more recently, the number of claims brought under investment treaties has spiked. This Article examines the relationship amongst these factors and is the first to review the emerging empirical economic literature investigating whether investment treaties achieve their goal of promoting FDI. The Article then specifically evaluates the impact that the procedural right to arbitrate investment claims plays in the process of promoting FDI and …

Empiricism And International Law: Insights For Investment Treaty Dispute Resolution, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

While scholars in the United States increasingly focus on the empirical dimension of legal scholarship, there have been challenges in using empiricism to explore international legal issues. Rather than relying on logic or instinct alone, empirical methodologies can provide scholars with tools to gain new facts, see existing ideas through a different lens, and engage in a more nuanced analysis of international law phenomena. There appears to be a natural synergy between empiricism and international investment treaty dispute resolution. With calls for trade time outs by U.S. presidential candidates, there is interest in how investment treaties function, whether they achieve …

El Desarrollo Del Arbitraje Comercial Internacional: Sofisticacion O Complejdad, Horacio A. Grigera Naón

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

An Empirical Analysis Of Investment Treaty Awards, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

I. INTRODUCTION

Earlier speakers offered insights about investment law and its implications for the future of domestic administrative law and international law. To bring us full circle, I will discuss where we are today so that we can consider where we want development law to be tomorrow. In pursuit of that goal, I offer empirical data related to investment treaty arbitration. My goal today is to focus on three claims about investment treaty arbitration and consider the data's potential implications.

The Role Of International Arbitrators, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

With the advent of the global economy, arbitration has become the preferred mechanism for resolving international disputes. Today international arbitrators resolve billions of dollars worth of disputes.' Arbitration has taken on such prominence in the international context that commentators express "little doubt that arbitration is now the first-choice method of binding dispute resolution" and has "largely taken over litigation."'

International Decisions: Occidental Exploration And Production Company V. The Republic Of Ecuador, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

Occidental v. Ecuador is the first claim under a bilateral investment treaty claim involving tax issues. This case comment analyzes the tribunal's award and offers a critique of both the analysis and the conclusion. This comment suggests that the tribunal may have gone further than necessary in its analysis of arbitrary measures impairing investment, failed to engage in a sector-by-sector analysis of national treatment, and compressed the analysis of separate rights into one broad test for evaluating fair and equitable treatment. The comment concludes that Occidental may best be understood as confined to its unique facts lest there be larger …

The Nature And Enforcement Of Investor Rights Under Investment Treaties: Do Investment Treaties Have A Bright Future, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

The number of investment treaties has surged in the past decade. Even now, the United States and Canada are actively engaged in programs designed to facilitate the completion of multilateral treaties such as the Dominican Republic-Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) and Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs). These investment treaties act like economic bills of rights, which grant foreign investors substantive protections and procedural rights to facilitate investment. Sovereigns, meanwhile, may benefit from these treaties by obtaining increased foreign direct investment, which may promote the development of their country's infrastructure 6 and offer citizens basic services including access to clean water, …

The Legitimacy Crisis In Investment Treaty Arbitration: Privatizing Public International Law Through Inconsistent Decisions, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Inter-American System, Diego Rodriguez-Pinzon

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

A Survival Guide For Small Businesses: Avoiding The Pitfalls In International Dispute Resolution, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

In the past decade, the number of small, entrepreneurial businesses participating in the global economy has tripled. With this increase comes a rise in the number of cross-border commercial disputes. The unwary small business, not familiar with international transactions, may commit errors that adversely affect their ability to do and stay in business. This article focuses on analyzing which methods small businesses should use in constructing their dispute resolution provisions and how to avoid errors in drafting and negotiation.