The rise of geopolitical risks – including the unprecedented international sanctions against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine, growing US-China tensions, and the raft of nationalistic measures adopted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting debt burden particularly in developing States – may have significant implications for Korean investors and their cross-border investments.

 

Investment treaty arbitration (or ISDS, Investor-State Dispute Settlement) can be an effective – and sometimes the only - method to manage these risks. Korea boasts one of the most extensive investment treaty networks in the region, with around 100 treaties with investor-State dispute resolution mechanisms in force. 

 

In this session that seeks to assist Korean investors and in-house counsel, we will explain how recent geopolitical developments interact with investment treaty protections, provide an overview of the protections available to the Korean investors and discuss how Korean investors may make the most of these protections, both when structuring (and restructuring) investments and after a dispute arises.

 

We will also consider the practicalities of bringing an ISDS claim (including factors such as costs, duration and procedural choices) and use case studies based on real cases and common issues that Korean investors may face with respect to their cross-border investments in the current geopolitical climate (with a focus on the popular jurisdictions and industries for Korean investors - including but not limited to the infrastructure, construction, and energy sectors).