2023 was another year of change brought by global factors, such as the Russia-Ukraine war, the rising trend of protectionism, the continued and increased disruption to supply chains, and inflation — all factors that are set...more
The UK has announced that it will review its membership of the Energy Charter Treaty (the “ECT” or “Treaty”) if there is no agreement on modernisation by November 2023. This announcement comes after a second vote on...more
On 6 September 2023, the Law Commission of England and Wales published its final report recommending some limited reforms to the Arbitration Act 1996 (“the Arbitration Act”).1 This final report follows a lengthy review...more
International arbitration offers fantastic opportunities for lawyers, including the chance to advocate for clients. Put simply, international arbitration is an alternative method of dispute resolution that involves the...more
The second part of 28th Session of the International Seabed Authority’s Council continues in Jamaica with the international community lying anxiously in wait. One major international actor is notably absent from the...more
As set out in our previous alert Pivotal Year for Deep-Sea Mining, the deep seabed is rich in mineral concretions containing cobalt, nickel, copper and manganese called polymetallic nodules. A vast number of these nodules are...more
Bond markets have been in upheaval recently, with knock-on impacts on decisions on whether to make or defend calls on performance security on construction projects.
In the first quarter of this year, we saw the continued...more
On 2 March 2023, the UK Ministry of Justice (“MoJ”) announced its decision to join the Singapore Convention on Mediation.
The United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation (or...more
The English Court of Appeal has provided guidance on how the UK’s Paris Agreement commitments impact certain investment decisions.
The Court rejected an application by Friends of the Earth (“FoE”) for judicial review of...more
Through Council Regulation (EU) 2022/328 of February 25, 2022, the European Union introduced new sanctions relating to, among other things, Russian aggression in Ukraine...more
Sixty years after the discovery of polymetallic nodules and thirty years after the establishment of the International Seabed Authority (“ISA”), deep-sea mining could be licensed as early as July 2023. The ISA is expected to...more
On 22 November 2022, the Energy Charter Conference is expected to vote on the proposed modernisation of the Energy Charter Treaty (the “ECT” or the “Treaty”), following an agreement in principle reached on 24 June 2022, after...more
On 22 September 2022, the Law Commission of England and Wales (the “Commission”) published its Consultation Paper (the “Consultation Paper”) detailing a suite of proposed revisions to the Arbitration Act 1996 (the “Act”)....more
Since February 24, 2022, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has led to unimaginable human suffering, a growing refugee crisis and a rising death toll. The invasion sparked a global response as governments moved to sanction the...more
3/30/2022
/ Airspace ,
Aviation Industry ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Exports ,
Financial Markets ,
Insurance Industry ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
Ukraine
On 12 January 2022, the Ministry of Law (“MinLaw”) of Singapore announced various amendments to the Legal Profession Act 1966 (“LPA”), which were subsequently passed in the Legal Profession (Amendment) Act 2022....more
In a judgment handed down on 2 September 2021,1 the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”) finally ruled that the investor-state arbitration clause, at Article 26 of the Energy Charter Treaty (“ECT”), does not apply to intra-EU...more
The International Chamber of Commerce’s (“ICC”) preliminary statistics for 2020 reveal a record total of new arbitration and Alternative Dispute Resolution (“ADR”) cases, reflecting the predicted growth in ICC dispute...more
The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID”) recently published its bi-annual report on its caseload statistics. The report covers ICSID’s fiscal year from July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020, and it...more
More than a third of the world’s population is under lockdown to slow the spread of COVID-19. The virus and these responsive measures have heavily disrupted lives, communities, and healthcare systems. Many businesses have...more
COVID-19 presents a unique and, for most parties, unprecedented challenge – a pandemic that has resulted in a global public health crisis and significant restrictions on global trade and labor, the repercussions of which...more
3/23/2020
/ Breach of Contract ,
Commercial Contracts ,
Contract Terms ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Force Majeure Clause ,
Frustration of a Common Purpose ,
Nonperformance ,
Public Health Emergency ,
UK ,
United States
Factory shutdowns in China (the world’s largest solar module and panel manufacturer), together with various other restrictions imposed by government authorities worldwide as a result of the outbreak of the coronavirus known...more
In a recent decision, TAQA Bratani Limited & Ors v RockRose UKCS8 LLC [2020] EWHC 58 (Comm), the English High Court held that an express contractual right in a joint operating agreement for non-operators to remove the...more
In the case of MPB v LGK [2020] EWHC 90 (TCC), the High Court dismissed an application to set aside an arbitration award on jurisdiction on the grounds that there was no arbitration agreement between the parties, and the...more