The Centre promotes the exchange of ideas among legal scholars and practitioners in the area of international investment law by organizing different events on a regular basis.

On Wednesday, June 30, 2021, the International Investment Law Centre Cologne and the law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer hosted a joint online workshop on commercial and investment arbitration. The workshop gave an direct insight into the exciting topic area of international arbitration and discussed current developments from legal practice. Which disputes are brought before arbitral tribunals and which litigation strategies can be used to convince arbitrators? What impact does the Corona pandemic have on international dispute resolution? And what is important when starting a career in this field?
You can find a report about the event here. 

On 13 January 2021, the IILCC hosted a webinar on 'Reform and Entrenchment in International Investment Law' in cooperation with Kenyatta University School of Law. In his keynote address, Professor James Thuo Gathii (Loyola University Chicago) shared his thoughts on the investor-State dispute settlement reform process. Further information is available here.

On 14 October 2020, the FDI Moot Training Workshop took place via Zoom. In cooperation with Saarland University and Halle-Wittenberg University, the participants were prepared for the FDI Moot with simulated pleadings.

This year's Frankfurt Investment Law Workshop on 'Investment Protection, Human Rights, and International Arbitration' took place on 6-7 March 2020 at the Goethe University Frankfurt. The conference programme can be found here.
The organisers of the workshop Rainer Hofmann (Goethe University Frankfurt am Main), Christian Tams (Glasgow Centre for International Law and Security), Stephan Schill (Amsterdam Center for International Law) and Julian Scheu (International Investment Law Centre Cologne) were very pleased about the numerous participations and exciting discussions.

On 22 January 2020 Stefanie Hankiewicz gave a lecture on “Smart Boarders – Kooperation der EU Mitgliedstaaten im Bereich Innere Sicherheit“ as a part of the event series which brings legal practice into the classroom (“Praxis im Hörsaal“).

Parallel to the meeting of the UNCITRAL Working Group III, a panel discussion on the reform of the ISDS took place in Vienna on 21 January 2020 at the invitation of the IILCC in cooperation with Prof. Dr. Christoph Schreuer and the law firm zeiler.partners. The discussion focused on the advantages and disadvantages of a Multilateral Investment Court (MIC). The event was supported by the IILCC Study Group on ISDS Reform. The conference report was published in Europäische Zeitschrift für Wirtschaftsrecht (EuZW 2020, 589 - beckonline).

Following the invitation of the International Investment Law Centre Cologne (IILCC) and the University of Siegen, the members of the Krickenbeck Circle met for the 12th time at Schloss Montabaur from 17 to 18 January 2020 to discuss new developments in international investment law. Once again, the conference report was published in Zeitschrift für Schiedsverfahren (SchiedsVZ 2020, 138 - beckonline / kluwer arbitration). 

On Wednesday, 6 November 2019 a panel discussion on the threat of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union (Brexit) was part of the series of events "Praxis im Hörsaal". Guests from the legal practice attended the lecture "Vertiefung Europarecht" and reported on the consequences of Brexit from a legal, municipal and entrepreneurial perspective.

On 31 October 2019 the FDI Moot Training Workshop 2019 took place in the rooms of the IILCC. In cooperation with Saarland University and University College London, the participants were prepared for the FDI Moot with simulated pleadings.

On 1 October 2019, the Europa-Institut at Saarland University and the IILCC co-organised a workshop on the reform of ISDS and the creation of a Multilateral Investment Court (MIC) in Saarbrücken. The topics included were the institutional structure and the implementation of the MIC, the selection and status of the MIC judges and the recognition and enforcement of MIC decisions. A conference report was published in the Kluwer Arbitration Blog.

On 27 June 2019, the “Workshop on ICSID Convention and EU Law” led by Tim Rusche (EU Commission) and Fransicso Arbrian (ICSID Secretariat) took place. The Workshop focussed on the impact of the Achmea Judgment, which was rendered by the CJ EU on 6 March 2018.

On 16 May 2019, the International Investment Law Centre Cologne (IILCC) celebrated its 10 year anniversary with an academic conference dedicated to the ‘Evolution, Evaluation and Future Developments in International Investment Law’. The conference was held in the premises of the Cologne Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHK) and provided an overview of the development and current status of international investment law from various perspectives. Further information on the conference are available here.

On 15 May 2019, Dr. Karl Brauner (WTO Deputy Director) gave a speech on “The Future Dispute Settlement in International Trade Law“ in regard to the 10 years anniversary of the IILCC.

On 9 May 2019, lawyers from Busse Disputes reported on their practical experience in the supervision of investment arbitration proceedings during an evening event for students and doctoral candidates under the motto "Practice meets Science". The following discussion and common dinner offered the opportunity for further exchange.

This year the ELSA Summer School on International Investment Law took place for the third time in cooperation with the University of Athens. For seven days, students received a profound training in international investment law, covering both basic and specialised issues. Jun.-Prof. Dr. Julian Scheu gave a guest lecture on "International Investment Law and Human Rights". Please find the program of the Summerschool here.

The doctoral seminar on International Investment Law at the University of Cologne took place on 6 July 2018 at the premises of the International Investment Law Centre Cologne (IILCC). The IILCC welcomed 10 participants who had chosen a great variety of topics related to international investment law. The seminar was led by Jun.-Prof. Julian Scheu (University of Cologne) and Dr. Martins Paparinskis (UCL) who alternately moderated the presentation sessions.

On 5 July 2018, the International Investment Law Centre Cologne (IILCC) invited academics, practitioners and students to participate in the conference "Protection of Foreign Investments in Europe - Perspectives & Solutions". The conference, which launched the new series of events "Santander Roundtable Discussions on International Economic Law", took place on the occasion of the Achmea-Judgment. Please find further information about the conference here. 

Event Series

In order to support a lively exchange between scientists, practitioners and students, the IILCC regularly organizes various events. These are used as a platform for legal discussions and suggestions.