This is a face-to-face course running from 9 – 11 November 2023. 

There is increasing interest in the potential for mediation to settle Investor-State disputes. A growing number of investment treaties contain specific provisions on mediation to resolve investment disputes, and much work has been done by organizations and institutions to promote the availability and benefits of mediation in investment contexts. This includes the new ICSID Investor-State Mediation Rules and the work by UNCITRAL’s Working Group III on Investor-State Dispute Settlement Reform. The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened interest in the use of timely and cost effective methods of dispute settlement such as mediation. The Singapore Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation, which entered into force in September 2020, is also a key development in the field of mediation and gives it credibility in the eyes of States.

CEDR through its work on an IS Mediation Task Force including leading ISDS Law Firms has helped to identify the key obstacles to States engaging in mediation and has formulated suggested means of overcoming these obstacles. States themselves through Institutions such as the Energy Charter Treaty have become increasingly interested in the use of mediation as an early grievance mechanism to use with investors to enhance inward foreign investment. Mediation therefore has an increasingly important process role in ISDS.

WHY ATTEND?

This 3-day interactive, practice-based Investor-State Mediator Training, designed jointly by the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR), the International Mediation Institute (IMI) and Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), will cover the context of Investor-State disputes within the ISDS landscape and will provide experienced mediators with knowledge and skills to mediate investment disputes including Stakeholder mapping and analysis, process design, co-mediation and intercultural considerations. In addition the ADGM is the first jurisdiction to have created a specific Investor State mediation panel specifically dealing with these types of disputes. With COP28 being held in the UAE this December and energy transition being at the heart of the discussion, the use of IS mediation will be a focus for discussion.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

Course registration is open to –

• Individuals who have participated in basic mediator training (40 hours minimum).
• Individuals who have practical experience serving as mediator.
• Practitioners in ISDS arbitration, who want to expand their skills to the field of mediation in the context of resolving these disputes.
• Experience in Investor-State arbitration is desirable but not essential.

Applicants will be assessed for suitability.