We advise and represent foreign investors and states in investment treaty arbitration proceedings, protecting the rights of investors against unlawful state conduct and defending sovereign interests in complex cross-border disputes.

Overview

When a government expropriates assets, imposes discriminatory measures, or otherwise interferes with a foreign investment in breach of its treaty obligations, the investor's remedy is not a domestic court — it is international arbitration under a bilateral investment treaty or multilateral framework. Investment arbitration is one of the most technically demanding areas of international law, combining public international law, treaty interpretation, procedural rules of major institutions, and deep knowledge of the underlying commercial sector.

Regis Law Office advises clients on the full spectrum of investment treaty claims — from early assessment of treaty entitlement through to proceedings before ICSID, UNCITRAL tribunals, and the Energy Charter Treaty framework, and on through to award enforcement or annulment proceedings.

Foreign investments in Turkey and Turkish investments abroad are protected by an extensive network of bilateral investment treaties (BITs). Turkey has concluded over 100 BITs with countries across Europe, Central Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. These treaties typically guarantee investors the following core protections:

Fair and Equitable Treatment (FET) The host state must not frustrate the investor's legitimate expectations, act arbitrarily or inconsistently, or deny justice in legal proceedings. FET is the most frequently invoked standard in investment arbitration and covers a wide range of governmental conduct — from regulatory changes that undermine an investment to procedural unfairness in licensing or permitting processes.

Protection Against Expropriation Direct expropriation — outright seizure of assets — is the most visible form of treaty breach. However, indirect or creeping expropriation — where a series of state measures collectively destroy the value of an investment without formal title transfer — is equally actionable. We advise investors on identifying and documenting both forms of expropriation from the earliest signs of state interference.

Full Protection and Security The host state is obliged to provide active protection of the investor's physical assets and legal interests. Failure to prevent third-party interference, or deliberate withdrawal of protection, can give rise to treaty claims even where the state itself is not the direct author of the harm.

National Treatment and Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) Investors are entitled to treatment no less favourable than that accorded to domestic investors or to investors from third countries. MFN provisions can also be used to import more favourable dispute resolution terms from other treaties concluded by the host state.

Free Transfer of Funds Treaties typically guarantee the investor's right to freely transfer investment-related funds — including profits, dividends, proceeds of sale, and loan repayments — out of the host state without restriction or delay.

Investment Arbitration Services

Treaty Entitlement Analysis Before any claim is brought, we conduct a rigorous assessment of the client's treaty entitlement — examining the applicable BIT or multilateral treaty, the investor's nationality and corporate structure, the nature and timing of the investment, and the availability of most-favoured-nation provisions to access more favourable treaty terms. This analysis determines whether a viable claim exists and how it should be structured.

Pre-Arbitration Strategy and Negotiation Many investment disputes can be resolved — or significantly narrowed — through direct engagement with the host state before formal proceedings are commenced. We advise clients on negotiation strategy, cooling-off period compliance, and the documentation required to preserve the evidentiary record for arbitration if negotiations fail.

ICSID Arbitration The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), a World Bank institution, is the primary forum for investment treaty arbitration. We advise on jurisdictional requirements under the ICSID Convention, the composition of tribunals, procedural strategy, and the distinctive annulment mechanism that applies to ICSID awards. Turkey is a contracting state to the ICSID Convention.

UNCITRAL Arbitration Where ICSID jurisdiction is not available, investment treaty claims are frequently conducted as ad hoc proceedings under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules. We advise on seat selection, appointing authority arrangements, and the enforcement of UNCITRAL awards under the New York Convention.

Energy Charter Treaty Claims The Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) provides investment protection for investors in the energy sector — covering oil and gas, electricity generation, and renewable energy projects. ECT arbitration proceedings are conducted under ICSID or UNCITRAL rules. We advise energy sector investors on the scope of ECT protections and the procedural steps required to initiate a claim.

Quantum and Damages Establishing the existence of a treaty breach is only part of the case. Quantifying the loss — through discounted cash flow analysis, asset valuation, or other recognised methodologies — is equally critical to the outcome. We work with leading forensic accounting and valuation experts to build and defend damages cases that withstand tribunal scrutiny.

Annulment and Post-Award Proceedings ICSID awards are subject to annulment before ad hoc ICSID committees on limited grounds — including manifest excess of powers, serious departure from a fundamental rule of procedure, and failure to state reasons. We advise both award creditors and respondent states on annulment strategy and on the enforcement or resistance of awards following the conclusion of proceedings.

Enforcement of Investment Awards in Turkey Foreign investment arbitration awards can be enforced in Turkey through the courts under the New York Convention and MÖHUK. We advise award creditors on asset tracing, enforcement proceedings, and the grounds on which Turkish courts may refuse recognition — and we act for respondents seeking to resist enforcement where annulment or set-aside proceedings are ongoing.

Turkey and Central Asia

Turkey occupies a distinctive position in the investment treaty landscape. As a bridge between European, Middle Eastern, and Central Asian markets, it is frequently the host state in disputes involving investors from the CIS region — Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, and beyond — as well as from Gulf states and European investors. At the same time, Turkish investors are increasingly active across Central Asia and Africa, where treaty protection for outbound investment is equally important.

Regis Law Office has particular experience advising clients whose investment disputes connect Turkey with the broader CIS and Central Asian region — including clients from Freedom Finance's home jurisdiction of Kazakhstan. We understand the commercial context of these investments and the regulatory and political dynamics that give rise to treaty claims in these markets.

Why Investment Arbitration Requires Specialist Counsel

Investment arbitration is not commercial arbitration under a different name. It involves a distinct body of law — public international law, treaty interpretation under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, and the jurisprudence of hundreds of investment treaty tribunals. The procedural stakes are high, the timelines are long — most proceedings take three to five years — and the financial consequences of strategic errors made early in the case are difficult or impossible to reverse.

Early engagement of specialist counsel is not optional — it is the single most important decision an investor can make when facing a potential investment dispute. The window for protecting the evidentiary record, satisfying treaty notification requirements, and structuring the corporate position before proceedings commence is often narrow.