Celebrating achievement: Foreign Direct Investment International Arbitral Moot Competition

Mr Stephen Moore,
Ms Nicole Franklin
and Ms Priya Wakhlu

Monash Law students Ms Nicole Franklin, Mr Stephen Moore and Ms Priya Wakhlu have found success at the Foreign Direct Investment International Arbitral Moot Competition in Frankfurt, Germany.

The Foreign Direct Investment International Arbitral Moot focuses on investor-state arbitration, and is designed to give students experience in this rapidly developing area of law. Preparation for the competition involved developing a strong understanding of public international law, foreign investment law and evidentiary and procedural norms. This knowledge was advanced through both written submissions prior to the competition, and oral submissions in Frankfurt.

This year’s problem drew upon recent litigation surrounding the introduction of the Plain Packaging legislation in Australia last year. It raised issues including what is required to obtain standing in an investor-state arbitration, what constitutes expropriation, and normative legal issues surrounding the awarding of moral damages.

The Monash University team successfully made it through the preliminary rounds and went on to win all of the three knockout finals before facing Harvard Law School in the Grand Final. In a split tribunal decision, the Monash University team was declared runner up.

The team would like to thank Faculty members Associate Professor Adam McBeth and Professor Jeffrey Waincymer for the assistance they provided.