The Global Arbitration Review (GAR, paid site) reported on the Stanford conference where Eric Z. Chang was a panelist and a presenter. The conference, organized by the Silicon Valley Arbitration and Mediation Center (SVAMC), addressed the advantages of international arbitration and mediation for tech-related disputes. This conference was previously described here.

The GAR article highlighted Eric Z. Chang’s presentation on third-party funding and the factors that businesses should weigh when deciding to use external funding to resolve a dispute. One prime factor, for example, is a company’s expected return on investment in its own R&D or marketing. When those returns […]

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (“TPP”), the multilateral trade deal designed to increase trade by lowering tariffs and using common regulations, will continue without the United States. U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from the TPP on January 27, 2017. After the United States’ withdrawal, some questioned the future direction (or existence) of the TPP. On November 10, 2017, the remaining 11 TPP nations (Canada, Mexico, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Peru, Chile, Brunei, Singapore, Malasia, and Vietnam) agreed in principle to the TPP, but noted they would still need to work through certain reservations held by Canada.

On January 23, 2018, the remaining 11 TPP nations announced they […]

On 11 January 2017, Mexico signed the Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States (“ICSID Convention” or “Convention”). Mexico still has to ratify the Convention (See Article 68.1), but once it does, it will become the 154th Contracting State to the Convention.

Mexico’s decision was likely influenced by the ongoing NAFTA negotiations, whose 6th round of negotiations will start up again 23 January 2018. Mexico’s signature also appears to show a vote of confidence in the legitimacy of the investment-treaty system at a time when Investor-State Dispute Settlement Reform is actively being debated by delegations at the […]