The Impact of Achmea on Investor-State Arbitration under Intra-EU BITs: A Treaty Law Perspective

• Authors: Georgaki Konstantina , Papanastasiou Thomas-Nektarios
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

This article examines the consequences of the Court of Justice of the European Union’s (CJEU) ruling in Achmea concerning Investor-State Arbitration (ISA) under intra-EU Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) from a treaty law perspective. It begins by briefly setting out the arguments of Advocate General Wathelet and the CJEU supporting their different positions on whether intra-EU BITs ISA clauses are compatible with EU law. The article then proceeds to analyse Achmea’s implications for intra-EU BIT ISA. It concludes that, as a result of the CJEU’s ruling, arbitral tribunals are deprived of their jurisdiction to entertain investors’ claims brought under intra-EU BIT ISA clauses. Finally, the article argues that Achmea’s applicability to cases brought under intra-EU BIT ISA clauses is limited, using the application of EU law as a relevant qualification. In order for an arbitral tribunal to be deprived of its jurisdictional competence as a result of Achmea, it must be entitled to interpret and apply EU law directly or indirectly in determining its jurisdiction.

Keywords

EN

Achmea; arbitral tribunal; intra-EU BITs; investor state arbitration; jurisdiction

• Publisher: Instytut Nauk Prawnych PAN / Institute of Legal Studies PAN
• Journal: Polish Yearbook of International Law
• Year: 2019
• Volume: 39
• Pages: 209-226

Dates

published

2020-10-26

Contributors

author

Georgaki Konstantina

• Mansfield College, University of Oxford

author

Papanastasiou Thomas-Nektarios

• School of Law Science, Neapolis University Pafos

Identifiers

DOI

10.24425/pyil.2020.134482