Originally from Pro-Arbitration Revisited: A Tribute to Professor George Bermann from his Students Over the Years

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I am delighted to have this opportunity to pay tribute to George Bermann. Beyond his tremendous contributions to our field, Professor Bermann’s impact on those who have had the privilege of being his students cannot be overstated.  As my Professor at Columbia Law School, he encouraged me to think more deeply about the policy issues that confront stakeholders of international arbitration.  When I relocated from Singapore to New York in 2013, Professor Bermann welcomed me into the arbitration community in the city.  His tireless dedication and leadership in our field continues to be an inspiration. 

This short contribution reflects on the challenges that face investor-state arbitration in an era of climate change and increasing environmental, social and governance (ESG) imperatives. These buzz words dominate our news cycle, our conference circuits, and even my rising first grader’s list of “topics to interrogate mommy about.” They polarize and intensify heated debate about the legitimacy of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS).

Critics of the ISDS system argue that investment treaties and investor-state dispute resolution threaten the freedom of states to implement the policy measures that are critical to the global energy transition.