ISDS: Status Quo, Reform or Reinvention?

Presentation

Laborde Law is pleased to convene a high-level discussion on the opening day of Paris Arbitration Week 2026 about one of the defining questions of our time for international law: Where is investor-State dispute settlement heading—and who will shape its future?

The conference will take place on Monday, 23 March 2026, at the Hôtel Plaza Athénée, Paris, from 14:30 to 18:00, in person (limited seating) and via Zoom.

Join leading academics, state officials, corporate counsel, practitioners and arbitrators for an examination of the evolving global architecture of investor-State dispute settlement.

Through two complementary panels, this afternoon will explore whether ISDS is undergoing gradual reform, systemic transformation, or something even more fundamental.

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Panel I | 14:30 – 15:30

Resistance or Reform? The Future of Investment Arbitration

The first panel will showcase a one-to-one debate between a leading representative of the investor perspective and a leading critic of the system. The discussion will address in particular:

• The proposal for a Multilateral Investment Court; and
• Shareholder claims and power to regulate, amid the most central issues being considered at UNCITRAL Working Group III.

Speakers:

• Tom J. Sikora, Senior Counsel, ExxonMobil Corporation
• Colin Brown, former head of the EU Delegation in UNCITRAL WGIII

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Panel II | 16:00 – 17:30

The EU v. Investment Arbitration: From Collision to Confrontation?

The second panel will feature a roundtable discussion on the ongoing enforcement battles pitting intra-EU award creditors against the European Union across the world. The panel will consider how this enforcement saga is a part of the wider structural tension between EU policy and investment arbitration.

Speakers:

• Professor George A. Bermann, Columbia Law School
• Professor Dan Sarooshi KC, Essex Court Chambers

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Cocktail Reception | 17:30 – 18:30

Moderator: Gustavo Laborde, Laborde Law