Here we publish news and analysis by Fietta’s lawyers on recent developments in public international law and investment treaty arbitration. You can also follow our ‘PIL Latest’ alerts via the firm’s LinkedIn page. Should you wish to discuss any of these developments, please contact Stephen Fietta on +44(0)203 889 9801, Jiries Saadeh on +44(0)203 889 9792, or Oonagh Sands on +44(0)203 889 9793 in the first instance.
ICJ upholds jurisdiction in The Gambia v. Myanmar
On 22 July 2022, the International Court of Justice (the “ICJ” or “Court”) upheld jurisdiction in the case Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (The Gambia v. Myanmar), dismissing all four preliminary objections raised by Myanmar. The Gambia instituted proceedings in 2019, arguing that Myanmar had violated the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (the “Genocide Convention”) through its treatment of members of the Rohingya group that resides primarily in Myanmar’s Rakhine State. In January 2020, the Court unanimously prescribed provisional measures, which, inter alia, required Myanmar...
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ICJ rules on the latest instalment of Nicaragua v. Colombia
On 21 April 2022, the International Court of Justice (the “ICJ” or “Court”) issued its merits ruling in Alleged Violations of Sovereign Rights and Maritime Spaces in the Caribbean Sea, brought by Nicaragua against Colombia. The Court upheld most of Nicaragua’s claims, ruling that Colombia had violated Nicaragua’s sovereign rights and jurisdiction in Nicaragua’s exclusive economic zone (“EEZ”). The ICJ upheld one of Colombia’s counter-claims and dismissed the other. [Read more] The case stems from the Court’s 2012 ruling in Territorial and Maritime Dispute (Nicaragua v. Colombia), which awarded Colombia sovereignty over certain maritime features in the Caribbean Sea and...
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Canada, Denmark and Greenland agree land and maritime boundaries in the Arctic
On 14 June 2022, Canada, Denmark and the Danish semi-autonomous territory of Greenland signed an agreement delimiting territorial and maritime boundaries in the Arctic (the “Boundary Agreement”). The Boundary Agreement resolved the long-standing territorial sovereignty dispute over Hans Island, as well as the continental shelf boundary between Canada and Denmark within and beyond 200 nautical miles. [Read more] First, the Boundary Agreement creates a territorial boundary between Greenland and Canada on Hans Island (also known as Tartapaluk) in the Nares Strait. The boundary follows a natural ravine that runs north to south across the length of the island. During negotiations,...
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ICSID Member States approve amended rules and regulations
In late March 2022, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID”) announced that its Administrative Council, comprising 156 Member States, had approved the amendments to ICSID Rules and Regulations (including Arbitration Rules) as submitted for vote in January 2022. The amended Rules and Regulations will come into effect on 1 July 2022. The amended ICSID Arbitration Rules cover topics such as third-party funding, claims with a “manifest lack of legal merit”, security for costs, expedited proceedings, arbitrator appointment and disqualification, a tribunal’s first session and deliberations, filing methods, time limits for awards, as well as publication of arbitration...
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ICJ grants provisional measures instructing Russia to suspend military operations in Ukraine and the Council of Europe expels Russia
On 16 March 2022, the International Court of Justice (“ICJ” or “Court”) granted Ukraine’s request for provisional measures against the Russian Federation (“Russia”), ordering Russia immediately to suspend its military operations in the territory of Ukraine. The Court’s ruling stems from Ukraine’s 26 February institution of proceedings against Russia concerning a dispute relating to the interpretation, application and fulfilment of the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (“Genocide Convention” or “Convention”). Oral hearings, which Russia did not attend, took place on 7 March. On 16 March 2022, the Council of Europe (“Council”) also announced...
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ECtHR Grants Ukraine Urgent Interim Relief Against Russia and ICJ Sets Date for Emergency Provisional Measures Hearing
On 1 March 2022, the European Court of Human Rights (“ECtHR” or “Court”) granted Ukraine’s request for urgent interim measures against The Russian Federation (“Russia”). The Court’s ruling came one day after Ukraine filed an application in respect of “massive human rights violations being committed by the Russian troops in the course of the military aggression against the sovereign territory of Ukraine”. On the same day, the International Court of Justice (“ICJ”) announced it would hold public hearings in Allegations of Genocide under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Ukraine v. Russian Federation). The...
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Ukraine Submits Application to the ICJ against Russia
On 27 February 2022, Ukraine filed an application instituting proceedings against The Russian Federation (“Russia”) before the International Court of Justice (“ICJ” or “Court”) in respect of “the interpretation, application and fulfilment of the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide” (“Genocide Convention”). On the same day, Ukraine filed an application to the ICJ requesting provisional measures. Ukraine seeks to ground the Court’s jurisdiction on Article 36(1) of the ICJ Statute and Article IX of the Genocide Convention. [read more] According to Ukraine’s application, Russia “has falsely claimed that acts of genocide have occurred in...
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ICJ Awards Democratic Republic of the Congo US$ 325 million for Damage Suffered During Armed Conflict with Uganda
In a landmark recent judgment, the International Court of Justice (the “ICJ” or the “Court”) ordered the Republic of Uganda (“Uganda”) to pay US$ 325 million in compensation to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (the “DRC”). The dispute arose out of Uganda’s military invasion of the DRC between 1998 and 2003. The ICJ’s judgment follows its prior 2005 ruling, which had held Uganda responsible for the unlawful use of force, widespread human rights violations, and the exploitation and plundering of the DRC’s natural resources. [Read More] In its 2005 judgment, the ICJ ruled that, failing agreement between the parties,...
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ICSID Submits for Vote Proposed Amendments to Arbitration Rules
On 20 January 2022, the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (“ICSID” or the “Centre”) announced that its amended rules and regulations, including ICSID Arbitration Rules (“Amended Arbitration Rules”), have been submitted for vote to ICSID’s governing body, the Administrative Council. This marks the fourth (and most comprehensive) update to ICSID’s rules and regulations. The amended rules are the culmination of a process of stakeholder consultation and negotiation that began in October 2016, pursuant to which ICSID issued six working papers detailing the proposed amendments. [Read more] The Amended Arbitration Rules contain a mix of new rules and...
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ICJ determines the maritime boundary between Somalia and Kenya
On 12 October 2021, the International Court of Justice (the “ICJ” or “Court”) rendered its final judgment in the case Maritime Delimitation in the Indian Ocean (Somalia v. Kenya), after deciding in 2017 that it had jurisdiction over the dispute. The Court rejected Kenya’s contention that there had already existed a maritime boundary, based on acquiescence, following a “parallel of latitude”. The Court proceeded to delimit a boundary following a form of equidistance line in the territorial sea and an adjusted equidistance line (due to a relevant circumstance of concavity, or cut-off effect) in the exclusive economic zone and continental...
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