OAS Department of Human Development

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM “Managing Investment Disputes”

                                                                                                                                                            OAS/DHD-CIR. 131/2008

1. Study venue: Ministerio de Comercio Exterior de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica. E-Mail: [email protected]

2. Coordinators of the Course:

• OAS: Maryse Robert, Tel: (202) 458-3600, Fax: (202) 458-3561, E-Mail: [email protected]
• UNCTAD: Anna Joubin-Bret, Tel: (4122) 917-5897. Fax: (4122) 917-0194. E-Mail: [email protected]

3. Modality: On site

4. Start and end dates: November 17-26, 2008

5. Course duration: Ten (10) days

6. Languages: English

7. Objectives of the course: The objective of this course is to equip government officials and practitioners from Latin America and the Caribbean with the necessary capacity to manage investor-to-State disputes in the implementation of their recently signed trade agreements and investment treaties.

8. Study program content: The course covers the following issues: Module I: Overview of Key Substantive Issues. Overview of international investment agreements: BITs, FTAs, State contracts, and stabilization agreements. Approaches to dispute settlement in investment agreements. Jurisdiction criteria: Key substantive issues giving raise to investment disputes: Module II: Investment Dispute Settlement Mechanisms and Awards International Dispute Settlement Mechanisms: National dispute settlement in the host country. Institutionally supported arbitration: Ad hoc dispute settlement: The cost of arbitration in various procedures: The Arbitral Award. Formal and substantive requirements of an award. The publication of awards. The date of the award. Recognition and enforcement of the award Module III: Conducting an Arbitration Initiation of a Claim. Procedure for the initiation of a claim. Amicable settlement: the "cooling-off "period. Mediation/conciliation. Screening of requests before registration Preparing to Defend a Case: Institutional arrangements to defend a case: setting up an in-house team. Internal or inter-agency cooperation for fact-finding. Selecting counsel. Selecting an arbitrator. Settlement during the arbitration proceedings: discontinuance of proceedings. Dealing with procedural issues: language, schedule of proceedings, hearings, venue, experts, submissions, briefs. Working with a counsel. Costs of proceedings: budgeting for fees, expenses, charges of arbitration centres. Seeking costs: quantification of in-house costs. The Arbitration Procedure. The arbitral tribunal: The arbitration procedure: Introducing objections. Governing Law. Role of national courts in interim injunctive relief and other phases of the procedure Module IV: Sharing Experience. Simulation exercises in small teams on conducting various key substantive and procedural issues, commented by experts and based on jurisprudence. Working group sessions on researching a case, accessing legal sources and case law. Two-day simulation on key elements of a dispute settlement case and deliberation of a mock arbitral tribunal. Videotaping of the proceedings and debriefing at the end of the simulation on both the substantive results of the procedure and behavioral aspects.

9. Requirements of the course:

a. Citizenship or permanent residence of an OAS Member State, with the exception of Costa Rica since it is the host country.

b. To hold a law degree preferably or to hold a degree in a field related to the candidate's current job.

c. Due to the very specialized nature of the course the participants must be government officials and practitioners with knowledge of issues related to international law and investment, international dispute settlement, and international arbitration.

d. The participant's application must be supported by their respective institution.

e. Proficiency in English is essential. Must be certified by the nominating institution.

f. Proficiency in Internet research.

g. A letter of recommendation from the participant's supervisor stating that the participant holds a university degree in a relevant field and that he/she is proficient in English in the case that the applicant is not a native English speaker. Proficiency in Spanish is desirable.

h. Provide certificate of good health from a physician /medical doctor.

i. Preference will be given to those candidates who have been directly involved in investor-State dispute settlement, international arbitration, and in negotiating and implementing investment agreements.

j. Submission of completed application form by the deadline set by the National Liaison Office (ONE).[1] It is the candidate’s responsibility to ascertain the deadline set by the ONE in his or her country of residence.

10. Benefits:

· For successful candidates, the OAS Department of Human Development will cover round trip economy class air tickets from country of origin or residence to place of study 2

· UNCTAD and the OAS Department of Trade and Tourism will cover tuition fees, course materials, and per diem (including lodging and meals):

11. Responsibilities of selected candidates:

· The selected candidates must confirm their acceptance to the OAS Department of Human Development in Washington, DC, the OAS General Secretariat Office in their respective countries and through the ONE in order for the OAS to proceed with making the necessary travel arrangements to purchase the air travel tickets, economy class, round-trip, between their country of origin or residence and the study location or, if the scholarship is refused, to appoint another candidate.

· The selected candidates must also confirm their acceptation to the course coordinators: Anna Joubin-Bret of UNCTAD: [email protected] and Maryse Robert of the OAS: [email protected] with copy to Becxi Sanchez: [email protected]

· Selected scholarship recipients are responsible for obtaining the necessary visa(s) to enter the country of study and the corresponding transit(s). The OAS will not be responsible for any costs relating to obtaining visas or transfer documentation.

· Each scholarship recipient is responsible for arriving on time for the beginning of the course on the date set by the institutions offering the course.

· If the scholarship recipient fails to travel on the scheduled dates, or changes routes, after the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (GS/OAS) has purchased his/her travel ticket, he/she will be responsible for paying the difference in ticket costs in order to arrive at the course site in time. The scholarship recipient will furthermore have to reimburse the GS/OAS the total cost of the airfare for his/her travel from his/her country of residence to the site where the Professional Development Course will take place and back if, after the ticket has been purchased, he/she declines the scholarship without written authorization from the Department of Human Development. The latter includes any additional costs, if any, incurred by the GS/OAS, such as extra costs for accommodation during the scholarship recipient’s travel to and from the country where the course will be held.

· If the scholarship recipient renounces, cancels or otherwise terminates the scholarship after the scholarship has begun, without showing sufficient cause to the GS/OAS, he/she will have to reimburse GS/OAS the amount of all scholarship expenses spent on his/her behalf.

12. Presentation of candidacies: The online application form must be completed on-line and can be accessed at: https://www.oas.org/fms/Announcement.aspx?id=77&Type=2&Lang=Eng

Once the applicant has completed the online application form and submitted it, a copy will be sent automatically to his/her e-mail account. This completed form must be printed, signed and submitted to the National Liaison Office (ONE) with all other forms (http://www.educoas.org/portal/en/oasbecas/formspd.aspx?culture=en&navid=282) that must be completed electronically or in typewritten format. This is a mandatory requirement

The following is the list of National Liaison Organizations (ONEs) in the OAS Member states: http://www.educoas.org/portal/en/oasbecas/ones.aspx?culture=en&navid=282

Please note that the official announcement is published in the language of instruction of the course and is available via the Educational Portal of the Americas Web page at: http://www.educoea.org.

Any questions regarding submission of applications for this course should be sent to: [email protected]

IMPORTANT NOTICE: THESE SCHOLARSHIPS ARE SUBJECT TO THE AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS CORRESPONDING TO THE 2008 REGULAR BUDGET

Sincerely,

María Levens

Director, Department of Human Development

JVanGlaanenweygel/LZea-Yonker/