Archive for the 'Public Policy' Category

A Brief Comment on the “Public Statement on the International Investment Regime”

On 31 August 2010, a group of over 35 academics (not including the current author), published a Public Statement on the International Investment Regime (Statement).  The preamble to the three-page Statement outlines why the Statement has been issued:
We have a shared concern for the harm done to the public welfare by the international investment [...] read more »

Swiss Federal Supreme Court sets aside CAS award for violation of the principle of procedural public policy

In a landmark decision of 13 April 2010 (4A_490/2009, published on 2 July 2010), the Swiss Federal Supreme Court confirmed that the principle of res judicata is part of procedural public policy, and it set aside a CAS award for violation of that principle. At first sight, the decision of the Federal Supreme Court seems [...] read more »

Should an Enforcing Court Re-open a Tribunal’s Decision on a Question of Public Policy?

When discussing public policy, English lawyers like to quote the famous comment of an English judge in the early 19th century that “public policy is a very unruly horse, and once you get astride it you never know where it will carry you”.
Recent history shows how difficult it is to ride the ‘unruly horse’; [...] read more »

Enforceability of Foreign Arbitral Award in the Greece: An Enlightening Supreme Court Decision

An interesting issue regarding the enforceability of foreign arbitral awards, in relation to the provisions of the New York Convention of 1958 and its alleged conflict with domestic Greek Civil Code provisions in relation to conflict of laws and public policy doctrines arose in Greek jurisdiction. The matter is of specific interest as the dispute [...] read more »

The INSERM decision of the Tribunal des Conflits: a storm in a teacup?

The arbitrability of a dispute is not generally limited to private law. In many countries, including Germany and Switzerland, it is admitted that arbitration can also bear on claims derived from public law, and in particular on rights conferred upon by contracts subject to administrative law. Arbitrability of such disputes may however be more problematic [...] read more »

Some additional comments on the (now amended) Heidelberg Report: A reply to Professor Hess

I am grateful to Professor Hess for his comments on my 3 March 2010 blog. It greatly contributes to advancing the debate. However, it also perfectly illustrates the difficulties of a proposition – the total or partial deletion of the arbitration exception in Regulation 44/2001 – that has not been sufficiently thought through.
1. Professor Hess [...] read more »