International Arbitration
States expropriate. Contracts are broken. Partners walk away. When a dispute cannot be resolved without crossing jurisdictional lines, arbitration is the only forum that gives both parties a genuine prospect of a binding, enforceable outcome. Stradalex acts for investors, corporations, and states in the proceedings that follow.
International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes. Treaty-based claims against host states for expropriation, breach of fair and equitable treatment, and other BIT violations. Awards enforceable in 158 member states.
International Chamber of Commerce. The world's most widely used commercial arbitration institution, administering complex multi-party and multi-contract disputes across all commercial sectors and legal traditions.
The premier arbitral institution for disputes with a European nexus, particularly those involving fund structures, private equity transactions, and intra-European commercial relationships governed by civil law.
Investor-State Arbitration
Governments expropriate investments — directly, by regulatory measure, or through a pattern of targeted conduct designed to force departure. When that happens to a foreign investor, a bilateral investment treaty will often provide the route to an international tribunal that the host state's own courts cannot. ICSID is that tribunal.
A formal transfer of title or possession of the investment to the state or a state entity — nationalisation, compulsory acquisition, or forced sale. Plainly compensable under virtually every BIT; disputes turn on the quantum of compensation and the applicable valuation methodology.
State measures that substantially deprive an investor of the use, enjoyment, or value of an investment without a formal taking of title. Regulatory changes, denial of permits, targeted inspections, and criminal proceedings against key personnel can all constitute indirect expropriation where the cumulative effect is equivalent to a taking.
A series of state acts, each insufficient individually to constitute expropriation, that together produce the equivalent of a taking over time. Identifying the pattern — and anchoring the investor's loss to the commencement of the series rather than its conclusion — is a critical element of the claim.
Our geographic focus in investor-state proceedings spans Africa (sub-Saharan mining and infrastructure), Eastern Europe and CIS (energy, real estate, financial sector), and the Middle East (construction, hospitality, and regulated industries). We act in English, French, and Arabic, and work with leading local counsel in each relevant jurisdiction.
Commercial Arbitration
Commercial arbitration is chosen over litigation because it offers a neutral forum, procedural flexibility, confidentiality, and — critically — an award that can be enforced across borders under the New York Convention. We conduct commercial arbitrations for clients at the ICC in Paris and at the Luxembourg Arbitration Centre, in matters ranging from joint venture disputes to complex financial instrument claims.
The ICC is the world's leading commercial arbitration institution, administering over 900 new cases annually across more than 140 countries. ICC arbitration is the default choice for complex cross-border commercial disputes, and its Rules — most recently updated in 2021 — provide a sophisticated procedural framework suited to multi-party, multi-contract, and expedited proceedings.
Our ICC work spans M&A disputes, long-term supply and distribution agreements, construction and engineering claims, financial products disputes, and shareholder disagreements in international joint ventures. We conduct proceedings in English and French, and appear alongside local counsel in Paris when the seat requires it.
We advise on ICC arbitration clause drafting, the selection of arbitrators and seats, applications for emergency arbitrator relief, and post-award enforcement strategy.
The Luxembourg Arbitration Centre (Centre d'Arbitrage du Luxembourg) is the preferred institution for disputes with a European fund, private equity, or financial services dimension. Luxembourg's position as the dominant domicile for European investment funds — over EUR 5.8 trillion in assets under administration — means that disputes involving fund structures, management agreements, and carried interest claims naturally gravitate towards Luxembourg-seated arbitration.
We act in Luxembourg-seated proceedings for fund managers, limited partners, and institutional investors. Our practice reflects the civil law tradition that governs most Luxembourg fund documentation, and we bring that fluency to the drafting of submissions, the examination of experts in valuation and accounting, and the enforcement of awards under Luxembourg civil procedure.
International arbitral awards are enforceable in 172 states party to the 1958 New York Convention with minimal grounds for refusal. We advise on the optimal enforcement strategy — selecting jurisdiction, identifying assets, anticipating and pre-empting annulment applications — as an integral part of every commercial arbitration mandate we accept.
Stradalex
Arbitration mandates benefit from early involvement. The drafting of the request for arbitration or the answer, the choice of arbitrators, the management of document production — decisions made at the outset shape what is possible at the hearing. We work best when instructed before positions have hardened.
We operate from Dubai, with a reach that spans the Middle East, Europe, and the CIS — the regions where the majority of our investment treaty and commercial arbitration work arises. All enquiries are treated as strictly confidential.