Originally from Revolution in the International Rule of Law: Essays in Honor of Don Wallace, Jr.

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I. Introduction

The recent adoption of the Rules on Transparency in Treaty-based
Investor-State Arbitration by UNCITRAL in July 2013 marks an
important milestone in the development of international investment
arbitration that was over fourteen years in the making. Despite the fact
that the issue of transparency (and its related topics of confidentiality and
privacy) in both international arbitration in general, and investment
arbitration in particular, have been the subject of significant comment
and analysis,3 the modest objective of this paper is to provide some
additional background and analysis concerning some of the less
understood paths which have led to this milestone. Thus, it is hoped that
the reader will better understand some of the background motivations
and balancing interests that gave birth to what may well be a new era of
increased openness in investor-State arbitration.4

Professor Don Wallace, in whose honor this paper is being written, is
a long-time participant in the activities of UNCITRAL (as a delegate for
the U.S.) and its sister organization, the United Nations Conference on