OVERVIEW
International arbitration involves many interesting facets of the law including customary international law, the law of treaties, conflict of laws, soft law and contract law. It has become the preferred dispute resolution option in international business. It has also been incorporated as the standard dispute resolution method in bilateral and multilateral investment treaties and in free trade agreements such as that between New Zealand and China (2008), New Zealand and Korea (2015) and the Trans Pacific Partnership (2016) (amended in 2018 as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans Pacific Partnership).
The course will begin on the first day with an introduction to the legal fundamentals of international commercial arbitration and some preliminary comparisons with investment treaty arbitration. The rest of the course will then focus on certain specific aspects of international commercial arbitration, and investment treaty arbitration including the usual substantive commitments on standards of treatment for foreign investors. We will cover both practical and more theoretical issues.
The course will be of particular interest to students contemplating a career in arbitration and/or international law, but we hope you all enjoy the course regardless of your future aspirations. On completion of the course, you should have developed an understanding of global diversity and harmonisation in approaches to resolution of commercial disputes, an understanding of the importance of choosing appropriate methods of dispute resolution to the enforcement of legal obligations; the dynamic features of transnational law making; and structure of, and policy issues relevant to, the arbitration of foreign investment disputes.
SYLLABUS
Topics will include:
- Applicable laws, conventions and “soft” law
- Arbitration clauses
- Confidentiality / transparency in arbitration
- Conflicts of interest
- Arbitrability
- Arbitral procedure
- The Role of the Courts in supporting arbitration
- Investment treaty arbitration
- Substantive protections in international investment law
LECTURER BIOGRAPHIES
Dr Anna Kirk
Dr Anna Kirk (LLB(Hons)/BA Waikato; PhD Cantab) is barrister and arbitrator at Bankside Chambers, with particular expertise in international arbitration and public international law. Anna is New Zealand’s member on the ICC Court of International Arbitration and is a Fellow of the Arbitrators’ and Mediators’ Institute of New Zealand (AMINZ). Anna has practiced in international arbitration in London and New Zealand and now regularly acts as arbitrator in both international and domestic arbitrations. Anna is a member of the Panel of Arbitrators for AMINZ, ACICA, NZIAC, SIAC (Reserve Panel) and HKIAC. She also has considerable experience in investment treaty arbitration, having worked closely with Sir David Williams QC for several years. Anna is a contributing author to Williams & Kawharu on Arbitration and holds a PhD in international law from the University of Cambridge.
Professor Luke Nottage
Dr Luke Nottage (BCA LLB PhD VUW, LLM Kyoto) specialises in international arbitration, corporate governance and consumer (product safety) law. He is Professor of Comparative and Transnational Business Law at Sydney Law School and Associate Director of the Centre for Asian and Pacific Law at the University of Sydney (CAPLUS). He is Special Counsel at Williams Trade Law and qualified as a lawyer in New Zealand (1994) and NSW (2001). Luke has consulted for law firms world-wide, ASEAN, the EC, UNCTAD, UNDP, OECD and the governments of Japan and Saudi Arabia. He has made numerous public Submissions and given evidence to Australian government inquiries on arbitration and consumer law reform. Luke was also a Rules committee member of ACICA (2004-2021) and is listed on the Panel of Arbitrators for the AIAC (formerly KLRCA), BAC, JCAA, KCAB, NZIAC, SCIA and TAI. He was awarded “ADR Academic of the Year 2020” by the Australian Disputes Centre. Luke’s 19 books include International Commercial and Investor-State Arbitration: Australia and Japan in Regional and Global Contexts (Elgar, February 2021), New Frontiers in Asia-Pacific International Arbitration and Dispute Resolution (eds, Kluwer, January 2021), International Investment Treaties and Arbitration Across Asia (eds, Brill, 2018) and International Arbitration in Australia (eds, Federation Press 2010). Over 130 manuscripts of his articles and chapters are at http://ssrn.com/author=488525.