Case Details

Société Générale S.A. v. Republic of Croatia (ICSID Case No. ARB/19/33)

Subject of Dispute:

Banking services and debt instruments
Economic Sector:

Finance
Instrument(s) Invoked:

BIT Croatia - France 1996
Applicable Rules:

ICSID Convention - Arbitration Rules

(a) Original Proceeding

Claimant(s)/Nationality(ies):

Société Générale S.A. (French)
Respondent(s):

Republic of Croatia (Croatian)
Date Registered:

December 20, 2019
Date of Constitution of Tribunal:

October 27, 2020

Composition of Tribunal

President:

Deva VILLANUA GOMEZ (Spanish) - Appointed by the Chairman of the Administrative Council
Arbitrators:

George BERMANN (U.S.) - Appointed by the Claimant(s)
Vanessa MAK (Dutch) - Appointed by the Respondent(s)

Initial Composition of Tribunal

President:

Pierre TERCIER (Swiss) - Appointed by the Parties
Arbitrators:

George BERMANN (U.S.) - Appointed by the Claimant(s)
Vanessa MAK (Dutch) - Appointed by the Respondent(s)
Reconstituted:

December 20, 2021: Deva VILLANUA GOMEZ (Spanish) appointed following the resignation of Pierre TERCIER (Swiss)

Party Representatives

Claimant(s):

Mayer Brown, Paris, France
Gajski, Grlić, Prka & Partners, Zagreb, Croatia
Respondent(s):

State Attorney’s Office, Zagreb, Croatia
Volterra Fietta, London, U.K.
Language(s) of Proceeding:

English
Status of Proceeding:

Pending
Latest Development:

April 15, 2024 - The Tribunal holds a pre-hearing organizational meeting with the parties by video conference.

No References Available.

(a) Original Proceeding

Date	Development
December 20, 2019	The Secretary-General registers a request for the institution of arbitration proceedings.
April 12, 2020	Following appointment by the Claimant, George Bermann (U.S.) accepts his appointment as arbitrator.
May 25, 2020	Following appointment by the Respondent, Vanessa Mak (Dutch) accepts her appointment as arbitrator.
October 26, 2020	Following appointment by agreement of the parties, Pierre Tercier (Swiss) accepts his appointment as presiding arbitrator.
October 27, 2020	The Tribunal is constituted in accordance with Article 37(2)(a) of the ICSID Convention. Its members are: Pierre Tercier (Swiss), President, appointed by agreement of the parties; George A. Bermann (U.S.), appointed by the Claimant; and Vanessa Mak (Dutch), appointed by the Respondent.
December 22, 2020	The Tribunal holds a first session by video conference.
February 24, 2021	Following the resignation of arbitrator Pierre Tercier, the Secretary-General notifies the parties of the vacancy on the Tribunal and the proceeding is suspended pursuant to ICSID Arbitration Rule 10(2).
December 20, 2021	The Tribunal is reconstituted. Its members are: Deva Villanúa (Spanish), President, appointed by the Chairman of the Administrative Council in accordance with ICSID Arbitration Rule 11(2)(b); George Bermann (U.S.), appointed by the Claimant; and Vanessa Mak (Dutch) appointed by the Respondent. The proceeding is resumed pursuant to ICSID Arbitration Rule 12.
December 20, 2021	Following the resignation of arbitrator Pierre Tercier, Deva Villanúa (Spanish) accepts her appointment as President of the Tribunal, appointed by the Chairman of the Administrative Council in accordance with ICSID Arbitration Rule 11(2)(b).
February 3, 2022	The Tribunal issues Procedural Order No. 1 concerning procedural matters.
March 2, 2022	The Claimant files a memorial on the merits.
March 30, 2022	The Respondent files a request to address the objections to jurisdiction as a preliminary question.
April 20, 2022	The Claimant files observations on the request to address the objections to jurisdiction as a preliminary question.
May 9, 2022	The Tribunal issues Procedural Order No. 2 concerning the Respondent’s request to address the objections to jurisdiction as a preliminary question; as a result, the objections to jurisdiction are joined to the merits of the dispute.
September 26, 2022	The Respondent files a counter-memorial on the merits and memorial on jurisdiction.
January 16, 2023	Following exchanges between the parties, each party files a request for the Tribunal to decide on production of documents.
February 3, 2023	The Tribunal issues Procedural Order No. 3 concerning production of documents.
March 5, 2023	The Tribunal issues Procedural Order No. 3 bis concerning production of documents.
April 11, 2023	The Tribunal issues Procedural Order No. 4 concerning the non-disputing party’s application to file a written submission pursuant to ICSID Arbitration Rule 37(2).
May 9, 2023	The Claimant files a reply on the merits and counter-memorial on jurisdiction.
April 15, 2024	The Tribunal holds a pre-hearing organizational meeting with the parties by video conference.