Can a three-year deadline in Armenia’s Civil Code derail a $331 million investment arbitration? The recent ICSID award in Rasia FZE and Joseph K. Borkowski v. Republic of Armenia says yes, exposing a critical spot in investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS): the quiet power of domestic law to strangle investment claims. The dispute stemmed from a grand infrastructure project, a North-South railway corridor meant to link the Persian Gulf to the Black Sea via Armenia. In 2012, Armenia signed two Concession Agreements with Rasia FZE, a Dubai-based investment vehicle, to conduct feasibility studies and project development. The Claimants asserted Armenia subsequently: (1) abruptly withdrew political backing; (2) failed to provide promised support; and (3) engaged with competing investors, actions they claimed constituted both contractual breaches and violations of the US–Armenia BIT’s FET guarantees. Joseph K. Borkowski, Rasia’s US-national CEO, joined the arbitration seeking $331 million for the project’s collapse.
Dispute Resolution
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Pitfalls and Solutions to the Annulment Procedure of PMAC Arbitral Awards
This article discusses the newly established Patent Mediation and Arbitration Centre (PMAC) of the Unified Patent Court (UPC), highlights certain issues about the judicial review of PMAC arbitral awards in annulment proceedings, and suggests three workarounds. The PMAC was established in 2023 by the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court (UPCA) and it is expected…
Compliance through Enforcement in ISDS: What can UNCITRAL Working Group III learn from the ECtHR?
The ISDS reform process at UNCITRAL Working Group III provides a unique opportunity to consider new institutional dispute settlement designs. As EJIL:Talk! Readers will know from earlier blogs on this reform process, a standing mechanism to resolve investment disputes is one of the key proposals in the strengthening of the institutional design, with a Draft Statute…
Argentina v Venezuela? Notes on Diplomatic Tensions and International Dispute Settlement
On 8 December 2024, Venezuelan authorities detained Argentine military police officer Nahuel Agustín Gallo after he entered the country from Colombia. According to Argentina’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Gallo first travelled by car to Chile, then by plane to Bogotá, and finally by taxi to the Venezuelan border in order to reunite with his Venezuelan partner and…
Preservation of Territorial Integrity – A Substantive Rule under UNCLOS?
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) establishes a comprehensive dispute settlement mechanism applicable to any dispute, subject to the exhaustive list of limitations and optional exceptions in Section 3, concerning the interpretation or application of UNCLOS. A complex topic that has arisen in several disputes regarding the application of UNCLOS is how to…
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