International Commercial Law

Transnational corporations form an omnipresent and powerful force in today's world. Increasingly, they are impacting and molding legal and administrative practices in every single state participating in global affairs. Yet, as international actors, they largely evade traditional structures of domestic jurisdiction. This mainly orbits two crucial questions, each of which covering theoretical and practical aspects: 1) What are applicable legal sources and principles governing trans-border commerce? 2) How can the conduct of private corporations be harmonised, and how can disputes arising in this global environment be settled effectively?

This course provides a basic understanding and firm knowledge of historical backgrounds, principles, institutions and actors dealing with international commerce. This includes not only an overview of the international treaty system, customary law, the role and influence of state actors and international organisations, but also a particular insight into the differences and similarities of the law governing international trade and foreign direct investment. On the other hand, this course covers some of the most important and topical aspects of contemporary disputes settlement mechanisms in international business law. This takes into account the role of domestic and international litigation, and includes international arbitration, ranging from ad hoc tribunals over state-to-state proceedings in international trading relations to investor-state arbitration.

By the end of the module, you should have:

• Acquired theoretical knowledge of the historical and institutional evolvement of the legal regime governing transnational economic activities.
• Been trained in the capacity of deploying key techniques to a wide range of actual and potential cases in the field of International Commercial Law.
• Developed speaking and rhetorical skills.
• Developed their understanding of academic debates and arguments as well as practical challenges in the field.