Introduction

On July 18, 2014, an arbitral tribunal comprised of Yves Fortier QC (chairman), Dr. Charles Poncet (appointed by claimants), and Judge Stephen Schwebel (appointed by respondent), after ten years of litigation, rendered three almost identical decisions awarding the majority shareholders of the now-defunct Yukos oil company, the largest oil company in Russia at that time, a stunning US$50 billion. This is the largest award yet in investment treaty arbitration. The shareholder claimants were Yukos Universal Ltd., Hulley Enterprises, and Veteran Petroleum. The Yukos Case ...