• Journal of Arbitration Studies
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.55-77
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• 2008

The purpose of this paper is to make a research on the administration and practical problems of the arbitral organization called "uth-North Commercial Arbitration Commission". The Arbitration Commission shall be set up under the South-North Agreements officially called "reement on Settlement Procedure of Commercial Dispute" and "reement on Organization and Administration of the South-North Arbitration Commission" between the South and the North of Korea. A variety means of dispute settlement including friendly consultations, conciliation and arbitration called Alternative Dispute Resolution(ADR) will be used frequently and institutionally to settle commercial disputes and conflicts arising from economic transactions between the South and the North of Korea. Under the circumstances, it is becoming a problem of vital importance how to operate the Arbitration Commission for the prompt and effective settlement of the South-North commercial disputes. First of all, the South and the North of Korea should recognize the availability of prompt and effective means of dispute resolution such as arbitration and conciliation to be made by the Arbitration Commission would promote the orderly growth and encouragement of th South-North trade and investment, for which the following measures should be taken as soon as possible : 1. Enactment of the South-North Arbitration Rules. 2. Designation of the arbitral institution by North-Korean side. In this connection, the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board(KCAB) was already designated officially as the arbitral organization of South Korean side as of April 17, 2007. 3. Arbitration shall be held in the place where the respondent has his domicile, in case that both parties fail to agree as to the place of arbitration. 4. Permission of a third country arbitration in case that both parties agree to do so. 5. To become a member country of international arbitration agreements including the New York Convention.

• THE INTERNATIONAL COMMERCE & LAW REVIEW
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• v.58
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• pp.313-328
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• 2013

Today FTA extends over the world and Korea as a main member of international trade is no exception. In the past Korea, as the developing countries, has made endlessly effort to induce foreign investment from foreign enterprise and/or government to be a truly OECD countries today and made it. Korea's trade economy was reached 1 trillion dollars in 2012. Now we have to find a new way to produce, process, procure goods from foreign investment and also need to protect our profit and/or rights within foreign judicial territory. There are two method to protect foreign enterprise or government. First they rely on general principles in WTO or Bilateral Investment Treaty that the principle of equality, national treatment, and most-favored-nation treatment, you can create a predictable environment to protect foreign enterprise and/or government. Second they need to incorporate contractual clauses in their agreement such as stabilization clause, force majeure, arbitration, governing law or sovereign immunity. Of course there are many things left behind to consider I hope it will be helpful to those who prepare foreign investment contract.

• Journal of Arbitration Studies
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.121-145
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• 2009

South Korea has investment agreements such as FTAs, BITs with several countries. Up to now, no single case has been registered against the Korean government on breach of investment agreements, but it is likely that the number of such cases would increase. Therefore, an investor-state dispute settlement system, an arbitral procedure by which a foreign investor may seek compensation of damage against the host country, is gaining its importance. The provision of the ISDS has been one of the hottest issues in Korea while the Kor-US FTA was being signed. In this respect, with the growing number of regional agreements such as BITs and FTAs, a careful scrutiny on the ISDS is necessary for Korea. I have therefore studied theoretically subjects including the National Treatment(NT), the Most-Favored Nation(MFN), Fair and Equitable Treatment and Expropriation - those that have been the objects of protection on investors. And I have analyzed ICSID arbitral awards and provided implications. In the ICSID arbitral awards, the Fair and Equitable Treatment turned out to be the most recognized violation on investors by the host State in terms of investor protection. On the other hand, Indirect Expropriation - a matter of which public anxiety was shown led by civic groups - was not generally recognized in arbitral awards. This study is written for sake of governments, local autonomous entities and public enterprises that are in charge of FTAs and BITs.

• Journal of Arbitration Studies
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.179-198
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• 2017

The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (The Guidelines) was initially promulgated in 1976 as a form of annex to the OECD Declaration on International Investment and Multinational Enterprises. The Guidelines aims at accomplishing the implementation and dissemination of the Responsible Business Conduct. The latest version of The Guidelines, as revised in 2011, directed 47 adhering countries to The Guidelines to set up their respective National Contact Points (NCPs). NCPs are The Guidelines' dispute resolution mechanism for specific instances arising from breach by multinational enterprises of The Guidelines. Korea to date has its own NCP performing its role to offer good offices and facilitates settlement between the parties to the specific instances regarding The Guidelines. However, there has been strong criticism from NGOs and civil society that Korea NCP has not performed well due to lack of transparency and impartiality, especially in the context of the governance of Korea NCP. Under this circumstance, this paper ⅰ) examines current status and problems of Korea NCP, ⅱ) evaluates the core criteria for function and governance of NCPs through a comparative overseas cases study, and ⅲ) suggests improvement plans for Korea NCP.

• Journal of Arbitration Studies
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.55-79
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• 2013

As arbitration becomes an increasingly popular mode of resolving disputes, neighboring industries begin to take notice. This interest is reflected in the increasing utilization of third party funding in international arbitration claims. In this regard, the third party funding industry appears particularly interested in investor-state arbitration claims because they typically involve considerable claim amounts and substantial legal fees. To examine this trend more closely, this paper, firstly, examines the investor-state arbitration more precisely in Chapter II. In Chapter III, this study continues to examine some legal issues which can arise as a result of a conflict of interest between the parties to the funding agreement including, inter alia, 1) a dispute in which the funder terminates the agreement during the arbitration proceedings, 2) a dispute in relation to a funder's intervention in arbitration proceedings, and 3) a dispute on the responsibility for adverse costs orders, if any. This paper further identifies major legal issues which can arise in relation to 1) disclosure of existence of the funding agreement, 2) attorney-client privilege. Lastly, in Chapter IV, this paper provides some lessons from an in-depth case study on third party funding agreements and solutions to avoid and to solve prospective disputes in the future.

• Journal of Arbitration Studies
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.53-83
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• 2023

The investment agreement prepared at the beginning of inter-Korean economic cooperation in 2000 can be evaluated as very ineffective as a product of mutual political and diplomatic compromise rather than an effective protection for our investment assets. South Korean companies suffered a lot of losses due to the freezing of assets in the Geumgang mountain district and the closure of the Kaeseung Industrial Complex, but they did not receive practical damage relief due to institutional vulnerabilities. Currently, North Korea is under international economic sanctions of the UN Security Council, so it is true that the resumption of inter-Korean economic cooperation is far away, but North Korea's human resources and geographical location are still attractive investment destinations for us. Therefore, if strained relations between the two Koreas recover in the future and international economic sanctions on North Korea are eased, Korean companies' investment in North Korea will resume. However, the previous inter-Korean investment agreement system was a fictional systemthat was ineffective. Therefore, if these safety devices are not reorganized when economic cooperation resumes, unfair damage to Korean companies will be repeated again. The core of the improved investment guarantee system is not a bilateral system between the two Koreas, but the establishment of a multilateral system through North Korea's inclusion in the international economy. Specifically, it includes encouraging North Korea to join international agreements for the execution of arbitration decisions, securing subrogation rights through membership of international insurance groups such as MIGA, creating matching funds by international financial organizations. Through this new approach, it will be possible to improve the safety of Korean companies' investment in North Korea, and ultimately, it will be necessary to lay the foundation for mutual development through economic cooperation between the two Koreas.

• Journal of Arbitration Studies
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.27-47
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• 2010

It is well recognized that the availability of prompt, effective and economical means of dispute resolution is an important element in the orderly growth and encouragement of international trade and investment. Increasingly, arbitration, instead of litigation in national courts, has become the preferred means of resolving private international commercial disputes. Under the situation, it will be important thing for arbitral institutions to reach an agreement to promote the dispute settlement of the commercial disputes, for which efforts have been made between the Korean Commercial Arbitral Board(KCAB) and principal arbitration institutions of the foreign countries. Since 1973, the KCAB has entered into many arbitration agreements with well-known foreign institutions of arbitration. If the place of arbitration is not so designated by the parties, it, as a general rule, shall be the country of the respondent(s) under the Korea-Japanese Arbitration Agreement. On the other hand, the U.S.-Korean Commercial Arbitration Agreement maintains 'Joint Arbitration Committee which finally decide the place of arbitration. In 1996, the Korea-Austria Agreement of Cooperation was concluded for the prompt and equitable settlement on an amicable basis of commercial disputes. Under this Agreement, arbitral institutions between Korea and Austria agreed to act as an appointing authority in accordance with the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules. It is also very important for Korea and China including North Korea to cooperate each other for the settlement of the commercial disputes within the Pan Yellow Sea Economic Bloc(PYSEB). The PYSEB is quickly becoming a distinctive and crucial region in the world sharing geographical proximity, many common historical experiences, and similar cultural norms and values although they have disparities in stages of development, trade and economic policies, and financial and legal frameworks. Finally, it should be considered to establish a central common system for settlement promotion of the commercial disputes within the PYSEB through the arbitration agreement. Such a dispute resolution system was already introduced and established within the area of the NAFTA, and it is called the Commercial Arbitration and Mediation Center for the Americas(CAMCA).

• International Commerce and Information Review
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.43-62
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• 2004

The present study reviewed the meanings of mediation and the roles of mediators, and examined the necessities of online mediation system, prerequisites for the settlement of the system, foreign cases of promoting online mediation and the current state of online mediation in Korea. It also identified problems in the mediation system in Korea and, based on the analysis of problems, discussed directions for the development of Korean mediation system in broad perspective. Directions for the development of Korean online mediation system suggested in this study can be summarized as follows. Firstly, the government must make an unsparing investment in order to activate online mediation system in Korea. Secondly, from the aspect of online mediation procedure, it is necessary to introduce online mediation system in combination with online seal system or certification marks. Thirdly, the judicial circle must take an amicable attitude toward ADR system and, furthermore, it is necessary for the court to be active in introducing various ADR systems. Fourthly, it is necessary to establish an integrated mediation system for the efficiency of mediation and cost saving. Fifthly, mediators must be provided with systematic and exhaustive periodical retraining programs. Lastly, it is necessary to help people to recognize that mediation system is a better service than other forms of dispute resolution procedure and particularly to enhance users' confidence in online mediation through advertising its advantages and safety. Moreover, in order to make e-commerce-related online dispute resolution available to everybody, it is necessary to overcome language barriers by establishing perfect service systems including automatic translation system in the governmental dimension.

• Journal of Arbitration Studies
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.201-216
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• 2018

After the adoption of the Lisbon Treaty, the European Union's Common Commercial Policy now belongs to the exclusive competence area of the EU, including the foreign direct investment (FDI) policy. Regarding the bilateral investment protection treaties (BITs) between the EU Member States, the European Commission is of the view that such BITs should be discarded. On March 6, 2018, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) held in the Achmea BV v. Slovakia case that a BIT between the EU Member States, as well as arbitral awards based on that BIT, is not subject to request for preliminary rulings under the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), and thus they are not compatible with the EU law. However, the judgment did not silence the controversy. Instead, many people questioned the legal reasoning and the legitimacy of judgment, and therefore the problem is still ongoing.

• THE INTERNATIONAL COMMERCE & LAW REVIEW
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• v.66
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• pp.149-170
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• 2015

State's compensation obligation accompanied in case of indirect expropriation of foreign investor's investment asset has been established definite principle under international investment law. But the concrete and unified application criterion regarding valuation methods for measuring compensation have not been established yet. The World Bank investment guideline is adopting the Hull's Formula, which is understood as the full compensation standard with prompt adequate effective compensation and Fair Market Value method. It is a general principle that compensation should be equal to the fair market value of investment asset just before indirect expropriation date. However, there is a problem of the valuation method of fair market value of investment asset. In general, discounted cash flow, liquidation value, replacement value, book value, etc. can be the applicable standards. Arbitral tribunals determine compensation by adopting proper valuation method on a case-by-case basis according to the discretion based on the arbitration parties' experts' review on the presented opinion and by considering fact relevance of the issued dispute. This compensation includes also interest, recently it tends to award according to compound interest rather than simple interest. Beginning of the period to generate interest is the next day of the indirect expropriation occurrence date. And it should be considered that interest until the payment of compensation is also included. In addition, it should be considered that mental damages is available only when there's a basis to prove this or special case. Therefore, this study suggests to review of precedents related to indirect expropriation and concretely specify compensation valuation standard and method of indirect expropriation on investment agreements through enough consultation beforehand.