Originally from the Journal of Damages in International Arbitration

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AWARD NOVEMBER 5, 2021

The Parties
Casinos Austria International GmbH and Casinos Austria Aktiengesellschaft (Claimants)
Argentine Republic (Respondent)

Sector
Gaming and Lottery, Arts, Entertainment, Recreation

Applicable Treaty
Argentina-Austria Bilateral Investment Treaty (1992) (BIT)

Members of the Tribunal
Hans Van Houtte (president), Stephan Schill (Claimants’ appointee), and Santiago Torres (Respondent’s appointee)

I.  BACKGROUND

This case arose from Argentina’s revocation of a 30-year exclusive license for ENJASA (which was majority owned by Claimants) to operate gaming and lottery activities in the Argentinian province of Salta. In the 1990s, Argentina sought to privatize its gaming industry. As part of those efforts to privatize the gaming sector, Respondent created the entity ENJASA.