Topic: Achmea

In the wake of the UK-EU trade deal, practitioners say questions remain over the investment protections in the agreement and the fate of the UK’s bilateral investments treaties with EU member states.

14 January 2021

Belgium has asked the European Court of Justice to weigh in on the intra-EU application of the arbitration provisions in a future update of the Energy Charter Treaty, as the European Commission signals it may propose withdrawal from the treaty if core objectives for reform are not met.

03 December 2020

At a hearing in Luxembourg this week, the EU Commission and a number of member states called on the European Court of Justice to rule on whether the Achmea decision bars intra-EU investment arbitration under the Energy Charter Treaty - even though the dispute giving rise to the proceedings is between non-EU parties.

19 November 2020

The Israeli billionaire behind an intra-EU BIT claim against Croatia over a thwarted project to build a golf resort near Dubrovnik has launched a new ICSID arbitration in his own name, apparently prompted by concerns over Achmea.

17 November 2020

Spain has once again failed to persuade a Swedish court to refer questions about the Energy Charter Treaty to the European Court of Justice before deciding whether to set aside an award in favour of renewables investors.

06 November 2020

Lawyers from Simmons & Simmons argue that the recent decision by UAE solar investor Masdar to renounce its award against Spain reflects the balancing act and challenges investors face when enforcing awards against states.

15 October 2020

An ICSID tribunal hearing an Austrian bank’s claim against Croatia has by majority rejected the state’s argument that the underlying bilateral investment treaty is incompatible with the EU legal order – in line with decisions in two other cases brought under the same intra-EU BIT.

14 October 2020

In one of the late Johnny Veeder QC’s last decisions as arbitrator, a tribunal at ICSID has agreed to hear an intra-EU BIT claim against Poland brought by Austrian investors in a pair of hotels – concluding that EU law did not apply to the question of its jurisdiction.

03 September 2020

As the EU opens a public consultation on intra-EU investment protection, Paschalis Paschalidis of Shearman & Sterling argues that investors and other stakeholders should seize the opportunity to put forward constructive criticisms of the existing EU legal framework and suggest potential improvements.

08 July 2020

An ICSID tribunal hearing an Austrian bank’s claim against Croatia has ruled that investor-state arbitration under an intra-EU bilateral investment treaty is not incompatible with the EU legal order – holding that the Achmea ruling does not apply to all intra-EU BITs.

24 June 2020