2022 SGCA-I 9 Civil Appeal No 55 of 2021 - Lao Holdings NV and Sanum Investments Ltd v The Government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic - 24 November 2022
Country
Year
2022
Summary
Arbitration - Award - Recourse against award - Setting aside - Conduct of arbitration - Evidence - Arbitral tribunal - Powers
1. This appeal concerns two arbitral awards (the "Awards") made in investor-State arbitrations between the appellants ("Appellants") as claimants in the arbitrations and the respondent ("Respondent") as defendant in the arbitrations. The arbitrations, seated in Singapore, were conducted by two three-person arbitral tribunals (collectively, the "Arbitral Tribunals") with common membership, save for the presiding arbitrators. The Appellants alleged violations by the Respondent of two bilateral investment treaties. One of the arbitrations was conducted under the auspices of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes ("ICSID"). It is referred to in these proceedings as the "ICSID Arbitration" and the arbitral tribunal therein is referred to as the "ICSID Tribunal". The other was an ad hoc arbitration conducted under the auspices of the Permanent Court of Arbitration ("PCA"). It is referred to as the "PCA Arbitration" and the arbitral tribunal therein is referred to as the "PCA Tribunal". The arbitrations were distinct proceedings and were not consolidated. They were however, largely conducted in parallel and were the subject of joint hearings attended by the two party-appointed members and the two presiding arbitrators.
2. Before their completion, the arbitrations were suspended pursuant to a Deed of Settlement (the "Settlement Deed") entered into between the Appellants and the Respondent on 15 June 2014. Under the Settlement Deed the arbitrations could be reinstated in the event of a "material breach" by the Respondent. Section 34 of the Deed provided that, if that occurred, neither the Appellants nor the Respondent could add new claims or evidence to the arbitrations nor seek any additional relief not already sought. In the event, material breach was alleged and the arbitrations were revived. The Respondent was permitted by the Arbitral Tribunals to adduce new evidence, in the revived arbitrations, said to go to illegal activities undertaken on the part of the Appellants. The Arbitral Tribunals, by their Awards, dismissed the Appellants' claims with costs. The Singapore International Commercial Court ("SICC") dismissed the Appellants' applications to set aside the Awards. The Appellants now appeal to this court. The appeal ("Appeal") involves the application of Arts 34(2)(a)(ii) and 34(2)(a)(iv) of the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration (the "Model Law"), which is given the force of law in Singapore by s 3 of the International Arbitration Act (Cap 143A, 2002 Rev Ed) ("IAA"). For the reasons that follow ("Reasons") the Appeal is dismissed.
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