September 22, 2021: Today the Secretariats of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) released an update to the draft Code of Conduct for Adjudicators in International Investment Disputes.

Version three of the draft Code of Conduct reflects extensive discussion and feedback on the original draft Code, which was published in May 2020, and version two, published in April 2021.  

Version three further streamlines the text and provides drafting options with regard to certain provisions. The draft includes explanations of the proposed changes and addresses comments received.

UNCITRAL and ICSID are also preparing a draft Commentary to accompany the Code, which will contain guidance on the interpretation of the provisions.

Background on the Draft Code of Conduct

The Code of Conduct is being developed jointly by the ICSID and UNCITRAL Secretariats in the context of UNCITRAL Working Group III (ISDS reform) and ICSID’s amendment of its procedural rules. It provides applicable principles and detailed provisions addressing matters such as independence and impartiality, and the duty to conduct proceedings with integrity, fairness, efficiency and civility. It draws from a comparative review of standards found in codes of conduct in investment treaties, arbitration rules applicable to investor-State dispute settlement, and of international courts.

Comments on version three of the draft are welcome and may be sent to the UNCITRAL Secretariat (uncitral@un.org) and ICSID Secretariat (icsidsecretariat@worldbank.org).

Further information and resources related to the Code of Conduct are available on the UNCITRAL and ICSID websites: