With the growth of the global economy and with international investors and foreign states actively involved in the commercial sector, there has been a concomitant rise in cross-border conflicts between international investors and foreign states. The use of international commercial and Investor-State arbitration is an increasingly popular, and sometimes controversial, method of resolving such disputes. Yet the legal regime governing these disputes is both complicated and often poorly understood. The unique procedural, private and public international law issues connected with international commercial and Investor-State arbitration call for knowledgeable and creative counsel. This course takes students through the basics of both international commercial and Investor-State arbitration so that they can master the theoretical, practical, and strategic problems present when a client becomes embroiled in a cross-border commercial arbitration dispute with another commercial client and/or treaty-based Investor-State dispute with a foreign state.

Through various modules, this course will cover the procedural and legal aspects of international commercial arbitration and Investor-State arbitration proceedings. The course will also address asset attachment and recognition of arbitral awards against foreign companies and sovereigns.