The British Institute of International and Comparative Law will host the Twenty-Second Investment Treaty Forum Public Conference on May 8, 2014. The theme is: "Investor-State Arbitration and Beyond." Here's the idea:This meeting proceeds from the observation that we are presently in the midst of a period of unprecedented re-examination and innovation with respect to the dispute settlement aspects of the investor-state treaty regime. The purpose of this meeting is to address some of the most important policy and rule changes which have taken place over the past several years and ask about changes and new structures currently under consideration.
The meeting will proceed under three panels:
1. 'Alternatives to Ad Hoc Dispute Settlement', which will look at proposals for alternatives to "ad hoc" arbitral tribunals, such as the use of specialised dispute settlement mechanisms for particular classes of claims, treaty-based interpretative committees, and the use of treaty-based appellate mechanisms.
2. 'Beyond Arbitration', which will consider the adoption by some states of domestic legislation to replace investment treaties and the future of ISDS in investment treaties between developed states, such as the US and EU.
3. 'Making the Most of Current Processes', which will look at changes to existing investor-state arbitral structures, such as UNCITRAL's new rules on transparency, innovations in mediation practice, and the role of treaty secretariat's as potential engines for reform.
