Inaugural Conference of European Federation for Investment Law and Arbitration (EFILA): "EU Law and Investment Treaty Law: Convergence, Conflict, or Conversation?"

23 January 2015

Time: 8:30am - 6:00pm
Venue: Macmillan Hall, Senate House, Malet Street, London, WC1E 7HU

The Centre for Commercial Law Studies is proud to co-host the Inaugural Conference of the European Federation for Investment Law and Arbitration (EFILA).

The main topic of the conference will be the review of the EU investment law policy. In particular, the speakers will discuss the recent and ongoing investment arbitration cases, including intra-EU cases, developments related to the new model of investment arbitration as included in CETA and the draft TTIP as well as a possible appeal mechanism for investment arbitration cases.

Programme

Download the EFILA conference programme [PDF 708KB]

• 08:30 - 09:00: Registration and Coffee
• 09:00 - 09:15: Welcome and Introduction
• 09:15 - 10:30: Panel 1: Pros and cons of the Existing ISDS System
  Is the current system of ISDS biased towards international corporations? What are its main flaws and what are its main advantages?
• 10:30 - 11:45: Panel 2: Intra-EU Issues
  Can EU nationals bring BIT claims against other Member States; What is the relationship between EU and public international law; Liability of EU Member State for taking action mandated by EU law; The ECT debate - was it supposed to permit claims between EU members; How does ECtHR fit in; Can the EU institutions stop awards being paid; Should you choose Geneva over Paris as seat?
• 11:45 - 12:15: Tea and coffee break
• 12:15 - 13:30: Panel 3: Extra-EU Issues
  What will happen to BITs between Member States and third countries; Should you sue the EU or the Member State/ allocation of responsibility/ does the claimant or the EU choose; Practical issues with bringing a treaty claim against the EU/ ICSID membership/ enforcing against the EU.
• 13:30 - 14:30: Lunch
• 14:30 - 15:45: Panel 4: Future Treaty Making 
  What would the EU-like investment treaties look like; The closed list of FET elements; The concept of indirect expropriation without compensation except in rare circumstances; The possibility of binding interpretations - even with retroactive effect - by Contracting Parties and its effect on the arbitral tribunal's work and the proceedings as such; The removals of the umbrella clause; The carve out of financial services for using ISDS
• 15:45 - 16:15 Tea and coffee break
• 16:15 - 17:30 Panel 5: Future Investment Policy Making and Its Expected Effects
  How will the future policy making in the area of international investment look like? What will be its effect on FDI and dispute resolution in the area of international investment?
• 17:30 - 17:45 Closing remarks

Contact

For further information concerning the conference, please contact Blazej Blasikiewicz at b.blasikiewicz@efila.org.

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