Past Event

BITs - The Good, the Bad & the Ugly of Bilateral Investment Treaties: What Investors And Their Advisors Need To Know About Investment Protection When Investing In Foreign Countries

Thu. October 29, 2015 08:00 am - 10:00 am !Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany New York

Investment Treaties protect foreign investors against the consequences of expropriations, unfair treatment and restrictions on the free flow of funds and can provide a basis for a claim by an individual investor against a state. Recent large arbitration awards have proven their benefit to foreign investors, but they have also increasingly drawn criticism.

The question whether and in what form to add investment protection has for example resulted in difficult discussions in the TTIP negotiations between the US and the EU. Our panelists will explore the importance and background of bilateral and multinational investment treaties, how they can be used when structuring investments, the current controversy surrounding them and recent developments.

Concretely, this program will address:
•  Bilateral Investment Treaties [BIT's]: A brief history of BIT’s, what they are and how they work.
•  Integrating BIT’s into investment projects, planning ahead
•  Interesting facts regarding the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID); Conflict Management & Resolution
•  Practical examples and background on Arbitrating BIT’s
•  Why have these treaties become controversial and currently constitute a hurdle in TTIP negotiations between US and EU?
•  Planning ahead: For Investors: Structures and legal frameworks to protect your investments; For Governments: Tool-kits on how to optimize BIT’s and how to utilize them to help attract FDI & retain investments (incl. real hands-on examples and data points)
•  Expectations for the future: How will (or should) BIT’s and BIT arbitration develop

SPEAKERS:
• Helena Sprenger, Partner, Houthoff Buruma
• Roberto Echandi, Lead Investment Policy, Trade and Competitiveness Global Practice, World Bank Group
• Miriam Harwood, Partner, Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP

TIMES:
8:00 - 8:30 AM: Check in
8:30 - 10:00 AM: Program
10:00 - 10:30 AM: Networking

REGISTRATION:
Registration for this event is now closed. We have reached capacity.

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