Guest Editorial on the ISDS Papers
Guest Editorial on the ISDS Papers ELTE Law School and the Representation of the European Commission have hosted a conference on the ‘The Reform of ISDS and the Newly Forming EU Investment Policy: Other Claims Against States Based on Violations of Property Rights’ on September 26, 2014, in the Aula Magna of the […]
European Investment Policy and ISDS
European Investment Policy and ISDS I Introduction Currently, the topic of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) and in particular the position of the European Union towards it is one of the most controversial issues with regard to the EU’s external trade policy. In late September 2014, the text of the EU–Canada Comprehensive Trade Agreement […]
The Fate of Intra-EU BITs from an Investment Law and Public International Law Perspective
The Fate of Intra-EU BITs from an Investment Law and Public International Law Perspective I Introduction It is estimated that almost 3,000 BITs are currently in existence worldwide. Of these, about 190 have been concluded between Member States of the European Union (intra-EU BITs). Most of these are between old Members of […]
Arbitral Awards Classified as State Aid under European Union Law
Arbitral Awards Classified as State Aid under European Union Law* Decisions obtained in international arbitrations against member states of the European Union (EU) may contradict decisions obtained at the final instances of European law and such decisions may declare that measures by member states of the EU were taken in contravention of […]
The role OF EU law in ‘intra EU’ ISDS under the ECT – Some thoughts on the Electrabel v. Hungary award
The role OF EU law in ‘intra EU’ ISDS under the ECT – Some thoughts on the Electrabel v. Hungary award As of today, there are several investor state arbitration procedures pending between an investor from an EU member State and another EU member State. These procedures are called sometimes ‘intra-EU’ disputes. In […]
Holocaust Litigation in U.S. Courts Involving Sovereign Entities General Overview & Hungary’s Experience
Holocaust Litigation in U.S. Courts Involving Sovereign Entities General Overview & Hungary’s Experience The Holocaust – one of the darkest chapters in human history – ended in May 1945. Fifty years later there was a proliferation of lawsuits in U.S. courts seeking restitution for Holocaust-era wrongs. These suits began with claims against […]
Judicial Enforcement of WTO Rules before the Court of Justice of the European Union
Judicial Enforcement of WTO Rules before the Court of Justice of the European Union I Introduction The judicial enforceability of the 1947 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and its successor World Trade Organization (WTO) rules has never been an easy issue under EU law. While the formal status of international […]
Recognition and Enforcement of ICSID Awards in the United States
Recognition and Enforcement of ICSID Awards in the United States I Introduction There is little doubt that arbitration awards generally, as well as those specifically arising from arbitrations under the International Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes (‘ICSID’), can reach gargantuan proportions. One need look no further than the recent, historic $50 […]
The Regulation of Offensive Speech in the New Hungarian Civil Code
The Regulation of Offensive Speech in the New Hungarian Civil Code** Introduction After a number of fruitless attempts at regulating hate speech (offensive speech)[1] had been blocked by the Constitutional Court in recent years in Hungary, the Parliament added a new anti-hate speech rule to the new Civil Code, which took effect on […]
‘Precedents’ in EU law – The problem of overruling
‘Precedents’ in EU law – The problem of overruling I Introduction Legal precedent is a term strongly linked to Anglo-Saxon legal systems. The system of precedent ‘means that the judges make law in the course of resolving disputes between litigants’[1] and is a system where ‘the role of judicial decisions has not only […]
Private Enforcement of anti-trust damages in Europe – a Germanic perspective on Directive 2014/104/EU –
Private Enforcement of anti-trust damages in Europe – a Germanic perspective on Directive 2014/104/EU – Abstract If an undertaking infringes European or national competition law, the infringers must expect to face a large range of possible sanctions, of both a public law and a private law nature. Regarding the latter, we take […]
Nandor Knust: Criminal Law and Gacaca. Development of a Pluralistic Legal Model Illustrated with the Example of the Rwandan Genocide
Nandor Knust: Criminal Law and Gacaca. Development of a Pluralistic Legal Model Illustrated with the Example of the Rwandan Genocide* Book Review The author, Nandor Knust, is head of the International Criminal Law Section of the Max Planck Institute for Foreign and International Criminal Law in Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany. Within the […]