Researchers' Activities

Senior Principal Research Fellow Christopher Thomas QC gave a speech at the 2014 Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) Congress on “Investment treaty arbitration: Just another form of commercial arbitration?” as part of the Closing Plenary Session on “Investment Treaty Arbitration in Asia: The meeting of international commercial arbitration and public international law”.

Senior Principal Research Fellow Christopher Thomas QC taught a two-day intensive training course for Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) officials on dispute settlement under international investment agreements. This was the second part to a three-day intensive course taught in November 2013.

CIL Head of Trade and Investment Law and Policy Professor Michael Ewing-Chow was invited to the Global Georgetown Alumni Academic Program on 11 December 2014 in Singapore to share his views on the ongoing Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations. He suggested that the slow progress must be understood in the context of the differences between the negotiating states, including the rule of law and the economic and social issues within each state. Further, the negotiating states also have different offensive and defensive interests. For example, the United States has an offensive interest in ensuring a better Intellectual Property (IP) regime, while Australia has the opposite. Similarly, Australia, Canada and New Zealand have an offensive interest in agriculture, while Japan seeks to protect this sector. These differences alone pose challenges for the negotiating countries in striking an agreement that can accommodate all their interests. In addition, he shared his view that it is likely that Multinational Companies (MNCs) who operate Global Value Chains (GVCs) will play a greater role in driving the negotiations. Another interesting interplay to watch will be China’s role, as it has announced its interest in joining the TPP.

CIL Research Fellow Dr Zhen Sun was invited to speak at a conference organised by the Joint Institute for Maritime Law and History of International Shipping Law School at East China University of Political Science and Law entitled ‘Maritime Non-Traditional Security Challenges in Asia-Pacific: An Interdisciplinary and Transnational Dialogue on Reconstruction of Legal Order’ on 15 November 2014, in Shanghai, China. More than 50 academics and students attended the Conference. Dr Sun delivered a presentation on ‘Mechanism under the 1988 SUA Convention for Combating Maritime Security Threats’, in which she argued that SUA provides States Parties with quasi-universal criminal jurisdiction over specific offences that threaten the safety of navigation. This may be an effective tool to address non-traditional maritime security threats in Southeast Asia if all States ratify and implement SUA. To download her presentation, click here.

CIL Senior Research Fellow Youna Lyons was invited as a speaker to the pre-conference policy discussions on the implementation of the D-2 regulations on 5 November 2014 in Singapore. In her presentation titled ‘Ballast Water Management Convention: D-1 and D-2 regulations and related compliance issues’, she discussed the circumstances in which Port States may proceed to indicative and detailed samplings and the sanctions that may be imposed by the Port State should the samplings suggest non-compliance with the regulations. The discussion was based on the language of the Convention, as well as the new Port State Control Guidelines adopted at MEPC 67. To view her presentation, click here.

CIL Senior Research Fellow Youna Lyons was invited as a speaker to the 6th Annual Offshore Decommissioning Training Workshop, Asia Pacific, in Kuala-Lumpur, Malaysia, on 4-5 November 2014, organised by DecomWorld. Youna presented a paper titled ‘Prospects for Rigs-to-Reefs in Southeast Asia: November 2013 Workshop Findings and Recommendations’. To download her presentation and for more information about the event, click here click here.

CIL Director Robert Beckman gave two lectures at the Ministry of National Defence of Viet Nam in Ha Noi on 23 October 2014. He was received by Deputy Minister of Defence and Navy Command Admiral Nguyen Van Hien. He also delivered a presentation at the Diplomatic Academy of Viet Nam on 24 October 2014. The lectures were on UNCLOS and the South China Sea.

On 23 October 2014, as part of CIL’s continuing collaboration with the International Cable Protection Committee (ICPC), CIL, ICPC, George Washington University Law School and the Sargasso Sea Commission, co-sponsored a workshop titled ‘Submarine Cables in the Sargasso Sea – Legal and Environmental Issues Beyond National Jurisdiction’. CIL Global Associate Tara Davenport represented CIL and served as rapporteur at the Workshop. The objective of the Workshop was to start a dialogue between the submarine cable industry and the newly established Sargasso Sea Commission regarding best environmental practices for the laying and repair of cables in the Sargasso Sea. The Workshop brought together government representatives, representatives from the cable industry, academics, scientists and lawyers to discuss the impact that cable operations may have on the marine environment, the ecological sensitivity of the Sargasso Sea and whether any best practices should be adopted to minimise the impact, if any, of cable operations in the Sargasso Sea. For more information about the Workshop, link to presentations and the Report of the Proceedings, click here.

CIL Head of Trade Law and Policy Associate Professor Michael Ewing-Chow and CIL Research Fellow Ranyta Yusran participated in the Legitimacy of International Trade Tribunals Meeting in Geneva on 17-18 October 2014, where they presented their paper on the ASEAN trade dispute settlement mechanism. The meeting was organised by PluriCourts of University of Oslo, Norway as the first editorial meeting for a book on international trade tribunals. Other contributors came from Europe, the United States, Canada, Africa and Latin America. Please click on the following links for their working paper and presentation titled ‘If You Build It, They Still Will Not Come: ASEAN Trade Dispute Settlement Mechanism’.

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) invited CIL Head of Trade and Investment Law and Policy Professor Michael Ewing-Chow to the World Investment Forum 2014 to chair the session titled ‘Development and Investment Strategies’, together with Stephen Gelb and Xiaolan Fu on 15 October 2014 in Geneva, Switzerland. During the discussion, the participants discussed Global Value Chains (GVCs), Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), and institutions and governance as potential focus areas for research on investment and development.

CIL Research Associate Junianto James Losari attended an academic conference held jointly by Universitas Pelita Harapan (Indonesia) and Foreign Trade University (Vietnam) in Jakarta on 14-15 October 2014 in cooperation with the World Trade Institute (Switzerland). James presented his paper on ‘Comprehensive or BIT by BIT: ACIA and Indonesia’s BITs’. He criticised the existence of intra-ASEAN BITs (bilateral investment treaties) alongside the ASEAN Comprehensive Investment Agreement (ACIA), which has resulted in dual regimes of investment protection in the region, allowing investors to pick and choose the most favourable standards applicable to them. James offered recommendations for reconciliation of the regimes and preservation of Member States’ regulatory space. The conference was coupled with the launch of UPH’s WTO Chair Programme by the Deputy Director General of the WTO, Mr Yi Xiaozhun and the Ministry of Trade of Indonesia, Mr Muhammad Lutfi. James represented Singapore’s WTO Chair, Prof Michael Ewing-Chow to convey his support and interest for future collaboration with UPH. [Photo from event]

CIL Head of Trade and Investment Law and Policy Professor Michael Ewing-Chow conducted a training session (organised by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) for Pacific Island (PACER-Plus) countries’ government officials on Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) and alternative mechanisms to ISDS in Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). He discussed several alternative dispute resolution mechanisms in FTAs, including commercial arbitration, domestic courts, as well as the development of dispute management systems. This was done as part of the preparation for the PACER-Plus negotiations with Australia and New Zealand.

CIL Director Robert Beckman and CIL Research Fellow Leonardo Bernard participated in the Workshop on the Future of the Seas in East Asia, held in Jakarta, Indonesia on 5-6 October 2014. The Workshop was organised by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, Jakarta. Professor Beckman was part of the panel on ‘Addressing the Challenges: Managing Disputes’, where he presented the legal perspective of the disputes in the East and South China Sea. To access his presentation, click here.

CIL Research Associate Junianto James Losari was invited to speak about the ASEAN Comprehensive Investment Agreement (ACIA) before representatives of various ministries of the Republic of Myanmar as part of a capacity building seminar on investment organised by the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia and the Ministry of National Planning and Economic Development (NPED). More than 50 government officials attended this seminar, which was held on 27 September 2014 at Hotel Sedona in Yangon. In his presentation, James emphasised the importance of improving governance and the rule of law in the country, as well as ensuring that Myanmar’s new regulations and policies comply with the ACIA in order to minimise the costly risks of litigation. For a photo from the event, click here.

CIL Head of Trade and Investment Law and Policy Professor Michael Ewing-Chow, assisted by CIL Research Associate Junianto James Losari, taught at the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs Training on Competition Law Policy and Intellectual Property Rights, which was organised by Drew & Napier and attended by twenty-seven government officials from around the world. Professor Ewing-Chow taught ‘Intellectual Property (IP), Technology, Investments & International Economic Law’ where participants learned about policy considerations that may affect States’ interests when entering into negotiations of IP provisions. Through the use of negotiation exercises using hypothetical fact patterns, the participants were tasked with reaching acceptable compromises relating to pharmaceutical products, tobacco plain packaging regulations and other public concerns pertaining to international IP and competition law regimes. For a photo from the event, click here.

CIL Research Fellow Ranyta Yusran participated in the 2014 International Law Association (ILA) Regional Conference on ‘Towards a Universal Justice? Putting International Courts and Jurisdiction into Perspective’ at the Lisbon University Law School, Portugal, from 11-12 September 2014. Ms Yusran presented a paper that she co-authored with CIL Head of Trade Law and Policy Associate Professor Michael Ewing-Chow entitled ‘If You Build It, They Still Will Not Come: ASEAN Dispute Settlement and Intra-ASEAN Disputes’ in Session 4 of the Conference concerning Dispute Settlement. The Conference was organised by the Lisbon University Law School and the Portuguese branch of the ILA and was attended by legal academics and practitioners from all over Europe. This is CIL’s second participation in ILA regional conferences. For a copy of her presentation, click here.

CIL Research Fellow Ranyta Yusran attended the 10th Anniversary Conference of the European Society of International Law (ESIL) in Vienna, Austria, on 4-6 September 2014. This year’s theme was ‘International Law and…’, which highlighted the interrelatedness of international law and other fields of study such as literature, political science, anthropology, feminism, etc. The Conference was attended by more than four hundred legal academics and practitioners from Europe, Central America, the United States, Canada, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Ms Yusran also attended the first ESIL interest group meeting on international courts and tribunals, which will be the theme of the next ESIL Conference.

CIL Director Robert Beckman participated in the 3rd Maritime Institute of Malaysia (MIMA) South China Sea Conference, entitled ‘Promoting Sustainable Use of the South China Sea in an Era of Dynamic Geostrategic Change’, at the Doubletree Hilton Hotel in Kuala Lumpur from 2-3 September 2014. Professor Beckman gave a paper and made a presentation on ‘UNCLOS Annex VII Arbitration’ in Panel 4 on Dispute Settlement Mechanisms and the South China Sea Disputes. His paper provided a background on UNCLOS Annex VII Arbitration and his oral presentation focused on the Philippines v. China case. Professor Beckman also served as one of three speakers in the final panel on Centering Diplomacy towards achieving a Sustainable and Peaceful South China Sea. For a copy of his paper on UNCLOS Annex VII Arbitration, click here. For a copy of his presentation on the Philippines v. China case, click here.

CIL Head of Trade/Investment Law and Policy Associate Professor Michael Ewing-Chow was invited to speak at the Inaugural ASEAN Center Seminar of the Richardson School of Law, Hawaii on 29 August 2014. He spoke on “ASEAN 2015 Integration and the Impact on CMLV Member States”.

CIL Director Robert Beckman participated in the ‘International Symposium on the Philippines v. China Arbitration Case: The Efficacy of the Annex VII Tribunal in Resolving Complex Territorial/Maritime Disputes’ from 21-22 August 2014 in Beijing, China. The Symposium was organised by the National Institute for South China Sea Studies in cooperation with the China Center for Collaborative Studies of the South China Sea. He presented a paper on ‘Offshore Geographic Features and their Significance to Sovereignty and Maritime Claims’. For his paper, click here. For his presentation, click here.

CIL Research Associate Junianto James Losari attended a meeting held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia to discuss Indonesia’s review of the investor-state dispute settlement mechanisms included in its existing bilateral investment treaties and make recommendations for future investment agreements. The meeting, held on 14-16 August 2014 in Jakarta, was attended by government officials from various ministries and institutions in Indonesia.

CIL Research Associate Zhen Sun participated in the 8th IFLOS Summer Academy at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) from 27 July to 22 August 2014, in Hamburg, Germany. Ms Sun received a partial scholarship from the International Foundation for the Law of the Sea to participate in the Academy. The four-week programme brought together a prestigious faculty to cover important issues on the international law of the sea and maritime law, including ITLOS judges and leading academics and practitioners from the maritime field. There were 41 participants from 33 nations who attended the 2014 Summer Academy. Ms Sun also participated in the moot court competition, where she and her team argued in front of a panel of four judges. Ms Sun’s Certificate was awarded by the Chair of the International Foundation for the Law of the Sea, Ms Doris Konig, during the formal Senate Reception in the Town Hall of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. For more information on the Summer Academy, please click here.

CIL Director Professor Robert Beckman and CIL Senior Research Fellow Dr. Hao Duy Phan were invited to participate in the Conference on ‘Legal Issues regarding China’s Placement of the Oil Rig Haiyang Shiyou 981 in Viet Nam’s Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf’ in Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam. The Conference was organised jointly by the Ho Chi Minh City University of Law and the Viet Nam Lawyers Association. Professor Beckman made a presentation on the Dispute Settlement regime under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and Implications for the Disputes between Viet Nam and China. To download Professor Beckman’s presentation, click here.

Ambassador-at-Large Tommy Koh delivered the keynote speech at the International Seabed Authority’s 20th Anniversary Commemorative Session in Kingston, Jamaica, on 22 July 2014. Noting that “the time for seabed mining has come”, Prof Koh emphasized that it “is now within our power to turn the ideal of the common heritage of mankind into reality”. For the full text of Prof Koh’s speech, click here.

CIL Head of Trade and Investment Law and Policy Professor Michael Ewing-Chow and CIL Research Associate Junianto James Losari spoke at the 2014 Society of International Economic Law Conference (SIEL) in Bern, Switzerland, on 10-12 July 2014. This biennial conference brings together the top academic experts and practitioners in the field to present their work and research on topics of trade, investment, and financial law. Professor Michael Ewing-Chow was an invited speaker at the session entitled ‘”Burning Issue” in IEL: Russia, Ukraine and the Crimea – IEL Dimensions’. Mr Losari presented a paper that he co-wrote with Professor Michael Ewing-Chow on ‘A Clash of Treaties – The Legality of Countermeasures in International Trade Law and International Investment Law’. To download the presentation, please click here.