issue #15, week 30. 26 July 2007
Prepared by TDM and Aloysius Gng (CEPMLP/Dundee)

TDM News Digest

provides a condensed overview of recent events of interest to the international arbitration community.

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Recent issues:

NEWS

Russia: Court upholds $145 mln tax claim against crude producer RussNeft

July 24, http://en.rian.ru/russia/20070724/69543897.html

The Moscow Arbitration Court upheld Tuesday a decision by the Russian Federal Tax Service to charge 3.7 billion rubles (about $145 million) in back taxes from crude producer RussNeft. The Federal Tax Service decided January 16 to demand additional tax payments from RussNeft, one of Russia's top 10 oil and gas companies, for 2003 and the first quarter of 2004. Two weeks later, the Interior Ministry's investigative committee launched a probe into gross tax evasion by RussNeft. At the same time, the court slightly reduced the sum of tax claims, partially satisfying RussNeft's lawsuit. RussNeft's annual oil output stands at around 17 million metric tons (125 million bbl).

Venezuela: Conoco feels the Chávez effect

July 25, http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0bb1f2e6-3aab-11dc-8f9e-0000779fd2ac.html

Hugo Chávez's moves to take control of foreign oil investments in Venezuela caused a 94 per cent drop in ConocoPhillips' earnings in the second quarter, as the company warned that future production would be hit because of the loss of assets in the country. Conoco, the third largest US oil producer, said its net income had been hit by a $4.51bn charge after it decided to walk away from its projects in the oil-rich Orinoco belt, rather than accept the terms being forced on it by Mr Chávez.

…

Zimbabwe: IDC Revives Settlement Bid Against Romanian Company

July 27, http://allafrica.com/stories/200707260214.html

THE Industrial Development Corporation is forging ahead with its bid to have the Paris-based International Court for the Settlement of International Disputes (ICSID) enforce a net final award in its US$4 211 750 dispute with the former Romanian state entity, Romsit, over a failed glass manufacturing venture.

IDC is awaiting invoices from the ICSID to approach the Reserve Bank for the foreign currency to pay the international court to issue the enforcement of the net final award. The industrial conglomerate will need to raise US$35 000 to meet the costs.

IDC recently sought and was granted approval by its parent company, the Ministry of Industry and International Trade, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to pursue the matter. IDC is seeking the award of the US$4 211 750 plus interest which at December 31 2006 stood at US$6 942 252. In addition the claim for expropriation of IDC's rights against the state of Romania was computed at US$61 995 835.

The ICSID in 1998 ruled in favour of IDC in the dispute with Romsit over the collapse of the Kadoma National Glass Company, which was launched in 1993. Romsit was involved in the project as a technical partner.

…

Tajikistan: Tajik Aluminum Sues Russia's UC Rusal

July 18, http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/07/18/ap3927054.html

Russian Aluminum giant United Company Rusal, which is preparing for an IPO this year, is being sued in the British Virgin Islands by Tajik Aluminum Co., or Talco, for allegedly defrauding it of millions of dollars, the Tajik company said Wednesday.

…

Rusal said it has its own litigation for $312 million pending against Talco in arbitration tribunals in the Zurich Chamber of Commerce and the International Chamber of Commerce.

…

Argentina: Telefónica de Argentina seeks to reinstate suspended claim

July 18, http://www.telegeography.com/cu/article.php?article_id=18776&email=html

Argentine telco Telefónica de Argentina (TdA) has started working on a request to maintain its 2003 compensation claim against the government, reports BNamericas, quoting local newspaper Infobae. TdA filed the USD2.38 billion damages claim with the World Bank's international arbitration tribunal ICSID, seeking compensation for billing restrictions imposed on it as a result of Argentina's 2002 financial crisis. The telco first suspended the claim in February 2006, accepting this as a necessary measure under which the Argentine government would renegotiate the operator's concession contract. In July 2006 it promised to withdraw the lawsuit altogether should the law change allowing telcos to offer triple-play services of voice, video and data over a single line. Telecoms authorities have said they are studying modifications to current regulations but have not given any indication as to when they may be ready to go to parliament, and in February this year the government said that no new law was likely 'in the short term'.

US Court of Appeals victory set to bolster conflict of interest law for arbitrators

July 16, http://www.thelawyer.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=127252&d=11&h=24&f=23

Dewey Ballantine has won a major victory in the US Court of Appeals. The ruling sets a new standard for arbitrators on potential conflicts of interest. The court held that "when an arbitrator knows of a potential conflict, a failure to either investigate or disclose an intention not to investigate is indicative of evident partiality."

The issue of arbitrator bias arose in an arbitration between petroleum coke traders Ovalar Makine Ticaret ve Sanayi and Applied Industrial Materials Corporation (Aimcor).

…

United Kingdom: Acting up

July 16, http://www.thelawyer.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=127105&d=11&h=24&f=23

Can London defend its position to act solely on an arbitration, or can a party break the agreement and switch to an EU member state if it is more favourable to its cause? Roger Hopkins and Ben Horn report

United Kingdom: Lords on the sea

July 16, http://www.thelawyer.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=127104&d=11&h=24&f=23

A recent Lords decision will see more shipping disputes go to arbitration when charterparty agreements are reneged upon. Nigel Wagland and Kevin Oram report

Ecuador prepares final appeal of Occidental tax dispute ruling

July 12, http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/07/12/business/LA-FIN-Ecuador-Occidental-Suit.php

QUITO, Ecuador: Ecuador will make a final appeal to a British court to annul a ruling ordering the Andean nation to pay a U.S. oil company a US$75 million (€54 million) tax refund, officials said Thursday.

On July 4, a British court rejected Ecuador's request to reverse a ruling ordering the country to pay California-based Occidental Petroleum Corp. a US$75 million (€54 million) value-added tax refund.

Ecuador will file the appeal on Aug. 4, Marcelo Cevallos, a spokesman at the solicitor general's office, told The Associated Press.

…

Venezuela: Ambassador says foreign partners may join, not lead, in tapping nation's oil

July 12, http://chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/biz/4961550.html

Venezuela's oil industry wants foreign partners to help tap its vast resources, but they need not come knocking if they want to call the shots, the country's ambassador to the United States said in Houston Wednesday. Ambassador Bernardo Alvarez Herrera said Venezuela is continuing compensation talks with major oil companies that walked away from their multibillion-dollar Venezuelan operations last month. They did so rather than agree to terms of relinquishing control in the face of President Hugo Chavez's nationalization of oil operations.

…

Turkey: Difficulties await Turkey in filling gas deal with Iran

July 19, http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/yazarDetay.do?haberno=117083

The Turkish-Iranian gas deal, which caused much surprise when its signing, late on Friday night in Ankara, was announced, presents several questions that must be answered if the project between the neighbors is to be long-lasting.

…

Bahrain: ICC unit to host arbitration talks in November

July 9, http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=187312&Sn=BUSI&IssueID=30111

A Bahrain branch committee of Paris-based International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) is planning a conference and workshop on arbitration in Manama in November. The announcement came as national chambers of commerce met for the 5th World Chambers Congress in Istanbul on July.

…

Ghana: Aggrey vs. Investcom

July 20, http://allafrica.com/stories/200707200816.html

…

The court presided over by Justice Henry Kwofie, granted a request for a stay of proceedings filed on July 17, 2007 by Investcom Consortium Holdings SA (now Investcom LLC) pending the determination of a complaint filed at the Court of Appeal against the ruling of the court, which has been slated for October 24, 2007 for hearing.

…

Ghana: Areeba contempt action withdrawn

July 10, http://www.modernghana.com/GhanaHome/NewsArchive/news_details.asp?menu_id=1&id=VFZSTk5VMUVUVEE9

AN ATTEMPT by the Ghanaian investor claiming 20% shareholding in Scancom Limited, operators of Areeba telecommunication network to have the Chief Executive Officer of the mobile telecommunication network and eleven others jailed, has been discontinued. Yoni Kulendi, the affable counsel of Richmond Aggrey, the Ghanaian investor yesterday withdrew a contempt application filed against Mr. Brett Goschen and eleven others placed before the commercial division of the High Court, presided over by Justice Henry Kwofie.

According to counsel, the application has the tendency to create discomfort to his client, as it would not augur well for steps of possible arbitration that is likely to be taken up by the court. The contempt of court application filed over a month ago was brought against the twelve respondents following the steps they took in seeking for arbitration process at the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA).

…

Iran guarantees foreign investments

July 8, http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=15809&sectionid=351020102

The Managing director of Iran's Privatization Organization says the approval of the foreign investment law in Iran shows government's determination. Speaking in a seminar titled 'Joint Investment Opportunities in Development Projects for Foreign and Iranian Companies', Gholamreza Heidari Kurd-Zanganeh asserted that according to Foreign Investment Law foreign investors can invest in 25 percent of economic sector and 35 percent in other sectors, ISNA reports.

"According to the same law the foreign investors can withdraw the original money they have invested in Iran and also their profits any time they wish," he said.

However, Kurd-Zanganeh noted that the foreign investors of bonds sector should leave their original money for at least three years since the beginning of their investment in Iran.

…

Russia: Bank of New York Fails to Appear in Russian Court to Defend $22.5 Billion Lawsuit

July 5, http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/070705/clth040.html?.v=95

The Moscow Arbitration Court heard opening arguments today regarding the Russian Federation's $22.5 billion claim against The Bank of New York, Inc., now the Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK - News), for money laundering activities the Bank had previously admitted.

"We believe it is offensive and an arrogant slap in the face to the judge, the court and The Russian Federation that the Bank of New York would fail to show to a hearing they were well aware of," said Maxim Smal, a Moscow-based attorney representing Russia's Federal Customs Service.

"We feel confident in the validity and strength of Russia's claim as well as our prospective to prevail in court with or without the defendant," he said. The next hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, July 10 at noon in Moscow.

…

Kazakhstan: World Wide Commences New Arbitration Against Kazakhstan and Kazatomprom

July 5, http://www.worldwideminerals.com/news/070705.pdf

World Wide Minerals Ltd. announced today that on June 15, 2007 it commenced a new arbitration proceeding against the Republic of Kazakhstan and its nuclear agency, JSC National Atomic Company Kazatomprom. The long-standing issues in dispute relate to damages and loss of property suffered by World Wide estimated at no less than US$4.0 billion representing:

- the value of cash and services invested by World Wide in Kazakhstan in accordance with various agreements made by World Wide with Kazakhstan and Kazatomprom respecting the uranium industry in Kazakhstan in 1996-1997; and

- the net value of uranium concessions and related assets that World Wide had the right to acquire under such agreements and relevant laws and regulations but of which it was improperly and unlawfully deprived.

The arbitration proceeding has been commenced under the Arbitration Rules of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) in accordance with the provisions of World Wide's agreements with Kazakhstan and Kazatomprom and in accordance with the Foreign Investment Law of Kazakhstan. World Wide is represented in the arbitration by Ogilvy Renault LLP, supported by local counsel in Kazakhstan.

…

See also "World Wide Starts Process Leading To Arbitration With Kazakhstan" http://www.worldwideminerals.com/news/060 223.pdf

Ghana: The Areeba Court Saga

July 4, http://allafrica.com/stories/200707040614.html

Ghanaian investor files fresh motion to restrain Scancom from London arbitration

PARTIES IN the 20% share claim by a Ghanaian investor, currently before the commercial division of the High Court, has resorted to what could be described as a cat and dog game.

An application seeking to restrain one party from proceeding with a pending arbitration process at the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) has been withdrawn and a similar one taken up by another.

Following the withdrawal of an arbitration proceedings by Scancom Limited, operators of Areeba telecommunication network against Grandview Management Ltd in the USA, the latter, yesterday, withdrew its application restraining the former from going ahead with the arbitration process.

…

Mongolian Cabinet OKs investment law

June 28, http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D8Q1KMU00.htm

Mongolia's Cabinet has approved a draft investment agreement opening the way for development of the potentially huge but controversial Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine in the southern Gobi Desert.

An agreement between the government and Ivanhoe Mines, the Canadian company that discovered the deposit in 2001, has been held up by controversy over how to share the wealth in a country suffering from widespread poverty and corruption.

The draft agreement, approved Tuesday by the Cabinet, calls for the Mongolian government to own a 34 percent stake in the project, and to pay for that stake using royalties from the mine, said Ch. Khurelbaatar, Mongolia's finance minister.

…

Russia: USD 1 billion arbitration for Tenex

Clifford Chance as the lead counsel together with Jones Day represented a Russian uranium selling monopoly Tenex as defendant in a Stockholm arbitration initiated by a US company GNSS for the recovery of almost USD 1 billion for non-deliveries of nuclear materials pursuant to a long-term contract. On 11 June 2007, after more than three and a half years of arbitration, which dealt with many extremely complicated legal issues of Swedish, US, Russian, Swiss and international law, and technical issues and facts, the arbitral tribunal dismissed GNSS's claim in its entirety and ordered the latter to pay Tenex its legal costs of USD 5 million and EUR 800,000.

With regard to Tenex's team, the Arbitral Tribunal noted that it is "indebted to the advocates who presented their submissions and evidence with characteristic lucidity and skill".

This outcome ensured implementation of the so-called "HEU-LEU Agreement", a Russian-US international nuclear disarmament treaty concerning the disposition of highly enriched uranium extracted from nuclear weapons, the implementation of which was threatened by the GNSS action. In addition, this case is one of those rare arbitrations where the arbitrators refused to enforce a contract on the basis that the party seeking enforcement knew at the moment of the conclusion of the contract about the circumstances, which therefore made it inequitable to enforce the contract.

Clifford Chance team included Ivan Marisin, Timur Aitkulov, Vasily Kuznetsov, Ilya Yeliseev, Vitaly Skibin, Alexander Padiryakov and Lyudmila Vychugzhanina in Moscow and Peter Rosher and Sandrine Colletier in Paris.

NAFTA Claim Dismissed, Dicey Clause Remains

June 14, http://ipsnorthamerica.net/news.php?idnews=906

WASHINGTON, 14 Jun (IPS) - A seven-year legal battle by the U.S. postal carrier United Parcel Service of America (UPS) against Canada, brought under a controversial free trade agreement, has been dismissed, but advocacy groups say a provision that allows corporations to sue for lost profits should be permanently dropped.

…

ACICA Mediation Rules

http://www.acica.org.au/mediation_rules.html

ACICA has recently promulgated a set of Mediation Rules. The ACICA Mediation Rules can be found here. ACICA has also created a Panel of Mediators. The Honourable Sir Laurence Street, AC, KCMG, QC will be the first member of the Panel of Mediators.

Launch of CEDR Commission on Settlement in International Arbitration

July 10, http://www.cedr.co.uk/index.php?location=/news/archive/20070710_277.htm

The first meeting of the CEDR Commission on Settlement in International Arbitration, with over 25 international jurisdictions represented, is taking place in London today. The Commission has been launched to investigate approaches to settlement within the framework of international arbitration and is co-chaired by Lord Woolf of Barnes (former Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales) and Prof. Gabrielle Kaufmann Kohler (partner of Schellenberg Wittmer).

International arbitration is seen as the default method for resolving disputes around cross-border commercial contracts but is attracting increasing amounts of criticism worldwide for being slow and expensive, with settlement rates reputed to be significantly lower than they are in most state commercial court proceedings.

The CEDR Commission will investigate the different approaches currently taken to promote settlement in international arbitration and make recommendations as to how arbitral institutions and tribunals might give parties greater assistance in finding ways to settle their disputes earlier and more cost effectively.

At the inaugural meeting today, leading international arbitrators, mediators, academics and counsel from different jurisdictions will launch the Commission. They will be supported by a select group of rapporteurs who will be responsible for research, drafting the early discussion paper and the final report. The Commission will meet again during 2007 and early 2008 to produce a 'White Paper' for publication to be launched at an international conference to be held in 2008.

…

JAMS Expands In New York, New Resolution Center in NY Times Building to Open in 2008

http://www.jamsadr.com/press/show_release.asp?id=274

JAMS, The Resolution Experts, the nation's largest private provider of mediation and arbitration services, announced that it will significantly expand its presence in New York City in January 2008 with the opening of a new Resolution Center in The New York Times Building at 620 Eighth Avenue (between 40th and 41st Streets).

The Class A office tower located in the Times Square District serves as the new corporate headquarters of The New York Times and several other prominent tenants. JAMS will lease a full floor of approximately 32,000 square-feet, accommodating its need for expanded large arbitration and mediation hearing rooms and a substantial number of medium-sized and smaller caucus rooms. The space will also include an expanded business center and café. JAMS is now leasing approximately 18,000 square feet of space at other locations throughout Manhattan. These locations will be combined into the New York Resolution Center on Eighth Avenue in The New York Times Building.

…

OPINION

Arbitration under a Bilateral Investment Treaty

by Oliver L Campbell, http://www.petroleumworld.com/Ed07071701.htm

Since ExxonMobil and ConocoPhilips have decided not to accept the conditions imposed by the government and depart from Venezuela, the matter of compensation for the investments taken over by PDVSA still has to be decided. The sensible course would be for the parties to negotiate the compensation but, if they cannot reach an agreement, the contracts covering operations in the Orinoco Oil Belt have a clause which allows for arbitration…

…

EVENTS

Specialised Arbitration & Advocacy Skills in International Oil & Gas Disputes
Annual CEPMLP Seminar exploring the legal and practical issues arising in the resolution of oil and gas disputes through commercial and investment arbitration
August 27-31, 2007 (provisional). The Old Course Hotel, St. Andrews, Scotland, UK
More information is available at the seminar website.

Brazil Hosts International Arbitration Conference - July 27

http://www.adr.org/sp.asp?id=32613

Brazil has increasingly embraced the practice of modern arbitration ever since the passage of its arbitration law more than a decade ago. Recognizing this positive development, the International Centre for Dispute Resolution (ICDR), the international division of the American Arbitration Association (AAA), and the Comitê Brasileiro de Arbitragem (CBAr) are sponsoring a conference on international arbitration practice in São Paulo, Brazil, on July 27.

Iran and ICC arbitration - 2 September

July 2007, http://www.iccwbo.org/iccbfdeg/index.html

Aspects of international arbitration of particular interest to Iranian business lawyers, in-house counsel and public sector officials will be the subject of a one-day seminar in Teheran on 2 September 2007. The program will begin with an address by the Chairman of the ICC Court and include speeches by experts on international arbitration law and practice.

LCIL Friday Lunchtime Lecture: "Parallel proceedings in international litigation" - Friday 12th October 2007

http://www.lcil.cam.ac.uk/news/article.php?section=26&article=475

Speaker : Professor Campbell McLachlan, Victoria University of Wellington; former Partner, Herbert Smith, London

Time : Lecture starts at 1pm (with lunch, sponsored by Cambridge University Press, from 12:30pm)

Venue : Finley Library, Lauterpacht Centre, 5 Cranmer Road, Cambridge

MOVES / JOBS

BIICL vacancies

The British Institute of International and Comparative Law currently has two important vacancies:

Senior Research Fellow in International Trade and Investment Law - see: http://www.biicl.org/opportunities/trade_investment_law/

and

Senior Research Fellow in Public International Law: the 'Dorset Fellow' - see: http://www.biicl.org/opportunities/dorset_fellow/

David Kavanagh and David Foster join O'Melveny & Myers

June 18, http://www.omm.com/webcode/navigate.asp?nodeHandle=828&idContent=6648

O'Melveny & Myers LLP announced today that David Kavanagh and David Foster, partners currently with Watson Farley & Williams LLP, will be joining the Firm's London office. Mr. Kavanagh, Head of International Litigation at Watson Farley, will lead O'Melveny's London arbitration and litigation practice.

"We're delighted that David Kavanagh and David Foster, with their expertise in the international arbitration field, are joining us in London," said Chris Ashworth, co-head of O'Melveny's London office. "The addition of David Kavanagh and David Foster is a great example of O'Melveny's continuing growth in London, and their experience will complement our globally recognized litigation practice."

Steven Smith, head of the Firm's International Arbitration Group, added, "Strengthening our global arbitration practice is a key priority in our firm's strategic plan. Just last year, Michael Moser, widely regarded as one of the leading international dispute resolution lawyers in China, joined our Beijing office. The addition of these two outstanding lawyers in London cements our capabilities in the key global arbitration centers."

…

Hassan Radhi elected as officer LCIA Arab Users Council

July 2007, http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=188242&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=30122

BAHRAINI lawyer Hassan Radhi has been unanimously elected as an officer of the London Court of International Arbitration's (LCIA) Arab Users Council. The Arab Users Council is a regional forum, among six regional forums constituted on geographical basis in the world.

Bob Pietrowski joins LALIVE's international dispute resolution group

Bob Pietrowski has recently joined LALIVE's international dispute resolution group and is currently in the process of moving to Geneva. LALIVE is pleased that Bob Pietrowski, a highly qualified and experienced international dispute resolution practitioner, has chosen Geneva and LALIVE as a base of his operations. Bob will be focusing in particular on further expanding and developing LALIVE's extensive oil & gas practice and LALIVE's practice in public international law.

New appointments to ICC Court: Manuel José Vial Vial & Kevin Kim

July 2007, http://www.iccwbo.org/court/arbitration/id15034/index.html

Two new appointments were made to the International Court of Arbitration at the 193rd session of ICC's World Council in Istanbul last week.

Manuel José Vial Vial has been appointed as the member for Chile. Mr Vial is a practising attorney specializing in a broad range of company and financial law. He also teaches civil law at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile Law School. A company director and member of various business and arbitration bodies in Chile, Mr Vial's experience covers both domestic and international trade.

Kevin Kim has been appointed as the alternate member for Korea. An attorney specializing in international arbitration and litigation, Mr Kim also teaches law at Korean universities and at the training school of the Supreme Court of Korea. He is an officer of numerous Korean arbitration bodies and has written widely on international dispute resolution in relation to Korea.

Members and alternate members of the International Court of Arbitration are appointed by the ICC World Council, which meets twice-yearly in different parts of the world. Following the two new appointments made in Istanbul, the Court now has a total of 124 members from 87 countries. It is this broad representation of cultures and legal traditions that has earned the ICC Court the recognition it enjoys in all parts of the world.

Fulbright Partner Mark Baker Joins AAA e-Discovery Task Force

July 9, http://www.fulbright.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=news.detail&article_id=6514&site_id=286

Fulbright's accomplished international law and arbitration co-chair and partner Mark Baker was appointed to the American Arbitration Association's new Task Force on Exchange of Documentary and Electronic Materials.

The American Arbitration Association (AAA) administers cases in alternative dispute resolution, with the focus of resolving matters out of the courtroom. The organization provides such services as appointing arbitrators, setting hearings and managing settlement through mediation.

AAA's e-Discovery Task Force was established to examine current document disclosure practices in international arbitration and will assess whether the practices are consistent with providing a fair resolution process that is also quicker and less costly than litigation. Upon finalizing its review, the Task Force will provide recommendations for discovery practices which could include drafting or amending institutional rules.

…

Books

Launch of the Manual of International Dispute Resolution

Conflict is not only about warfare. Most conflicts in the world today are about territorial and maritime boundaries, as well as trading, commercial, investment and intellectual property disputes.

"International dispute resolution, in one or another form, is the practical concern of innumerable businessmen, public servants, lawyers and leaders," says Sandra Day O'Connor, former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States in her foreword to the Commonwealth Secretariat's Manual of International Dispute Resolution.

"This manual addresses a topic at the confluence of several powerful trends in contemporary law, commerce and international relations."

While international arbitration has already been widely written about, this book is unique in that it targets law officers dealing with dispute resolution in small states and developing countries.

It is particularly valuable in countries with limited capacity and resources, where arbitration and negotiated settlement is always preferable to litigation.

In addition, the rapid pace of globalisation means that this subject area is no longer confined to major trading blocs or powerful nations. It is increasingly relevant to smaller nations, or less developed countries, where the impact of global trade is often felt most intensely.

The book not only covers traditional areas of dispute, but also new types of disputes that have emerged, such as arbitrations concerning investment treaty disputes and disputes arising out of the use of the Internet.

The author, Anthony Connerty, is an English barrister and an expert in the field of international dispute resolution. He says, "The Manual tries to look - through the eyes of Commonwealth countries - at the world beyond the Commonwealth: the world of international dispute resolution in the area of inter-State disputes and in the fields of international trade and commerce, investment and intellectual property."

The Manual is divided into five parts, the first dealing with dispute avoidance and dispute resolution, covering supranational disputes, where one or more parties is likely to be a State. Importantly, this includes methods that are used to prevent disputes from arising at all. This part also introduces the four major dispute resolution processes - litigation, arbitration, alternative dispute resolution and expert determination. Organisations involved in resolving international disputes are presented: Supranational tribunals such as the International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and those concerned with international commercial dispute resolution such as the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

Part 1 concludes by referring to a number of international treaties and conventions that are of particular relevance to international trade and investment, such as the Washington Convention which is about the settlement of investment disputes between states and nationals of other states.

Part 2 focuses on supranational dispute resolution and covers international law and the Vienna Convention on the Law of the Treaties. It also looks at three areas of growing importance: territorial disputes, maritime delimitation disputes and investor-State disputes.

Part 3 deals with supranational dispute resolution bodies in more detail, including the International Court of Justice, the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, the World Bank's International Centre of Settlement of Investment Disputes and problems that have arisen in the field of investor-State disputes.

Part 4 is concerned with international commercial dispute resolution, covering litigation in national courts and international commercial arbitration. This section compares arbitration to litigation, and looks at the UN Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), Model Arbitration Law and the New York Convention - arguably the most important convention in the field of international commercial arbitration.

International commercial arbitral institutions and their Rules are outlined, including the UNCITRAL Arbitration Laws. The development and the different types of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is introduced. A fourth method of dispute resolution - expert determination -- is considered, with comparisons between expert determination and arbitration.

Part 5 looks at online dispute resolution, including the ICC's procedure for dealing with documentary credit disputes and the UN's World Intellectual Property Organisation Domain Name Dispute Resolution System.

Anthony Connerty, Manual of International Dispute Resolution, ISBN 978-0-85092-837-2; November 2006, 372 pages, £30.00. Published by the Commonwealth Secretariat, Marlborough House, Pall Mall, London SW1Y 5HX, UK. Tel +44 (0)20 7747 6342, Fax +44 (0)20 7839 9081, E-mail publications@commonwealth.int, Web www.thecommonwealth.org/publications.

Available in the USA from Stylus Publishing LLC, PO Box 605, Herndon, VA 20172-0605, USA. Tel +1 703 661 1581, or 800 232 0223, Fax +1 703 661 1501, E-mail styluspub@aol.com , Web www.styluspub.com.

Note: A chapter from this book was published earlier this year "Alternative Dispute Resolution" at https://www.transnational-dispute-management.com/journal-advance-publication.asp

Who's Who in Public International Law 2007

http://www.lcil.cam.ac.uk/news/article.php?section=25&article=473

The first edition of Who's Who in Public International Law has just been published by Crestwall Limited. Masterminded by Sir Eli Lauterpacht and edited by Jennifer Byford, this unique reference work is an invaluable aid in the selection of international judges and arbitrators and the indentification of leading academics and practising lawyers with experience and status in the field of comtemporary public international law.

To order your copy or for more information contact Crestwall: tel: ++ 44 (0) 1223 740 498, email: wwpil@crestwall.com or visit www.crestwall.com.

ICSID Reports Volume 12 now out

June 29, http://www.lcil.cam.ac.uk/news/article.php?section=25&article=458

Volume 12 of the ICSID Reports has now been published by Cambridge University Press. The ICSID Reports provide the only comprehensive published collection of arbitral awards and decisions given under the auspices of the World Bank's International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes or pursuant to other multilateral or bilateral investment treaties, including in particular the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT). These decisions make an important contribution to the growing body of jurisprudence on international investment. The ICSID Reports are an invaluable tool for practitioners and scholars alike working in the field of international commercial arbitration or advising foreign investors.

Volume 12 Contents: 1. MTD Equity Sdn. Bhd. and MTD Chile SA v. Republic of Chile; 2. Occidental Exploration and Production Company v. Republic of Ecuador; 3. Soufraki v. United Arab Emirates (ICSID Case No. ARB/02/7); 4. Siemens AG v. Argentine Republic (ICSID Case No. ARB/02/8); 5. Empresas Lucchetti SA and Lucchetti Perú SA v. Republic of Peru; 6. Impreglio SpA v. Islamic Republic of Pakistan (ICSID Case No. ARB/03/3); 7. AES Corporation v. Argentine Republic (ICSID Case No. ARB/02/17); 8. Eureko BV v. Republic of Poland; 9. EnCana Corporation v. Republic of Ecuador.