Sovereign debt and international arbitrationinstitutions: The lawsuits against Argentina (2006-2016)

Abstract

Guided by the interest of reinserting Argentine Republic into global financial circuits, the administration of Mauricio Macri (2015, onwards) sought to resolve disputes with the holders of Argentine bonds in an irregular situation. As part of this strategy - preannounced in the election campaign and implemented swiftly in the early days of government- the administration concluded agreements with italian bondholders who had brought claims against the country under the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). These complaints, initiated after the closing of the first stage of the restructuring process in 2005, were subject of multiple-academic political questions since they implied challenges not only for the Argentinean State but for the entire international financial system by altering the institutional circuits for resolution of disputes regarding sovereign debt. The purpose of this article is to analyze the course of the claims filed by holders of public securities in the ICSID, from its inception to its termination by arrangement.