Within the framework of the research carried out by the CIDS for the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) on the reform of investor-state arbitration, an expert group meeting was held in Geneva, hosted by the Swiss government and organised jointly by the CIDS and UNCITRAL.

The welcome addresses were delivered by Ambassador Didier Chambovey, Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the UN, WTO and EFTA, Professor Gabrielle Kaufmann-Kohler, Director of the CIDS and Mr Renaud Sorieul, then Secreatry of UNCITRAL.

Delegates representing 35 States and the European Union, officials, representatives of arbitral institutions and international organizations, and investment arbitration experts debated the findings and roadmap presented by the CIDS Report on ISDS reform. Participants discussed the need and possible avenues of a reform at a multilateral level.

The purpose of the meeting was to consider how the project of investor-State dispute settlement reform might be carried forward at a multilateral level, if approved as a topic for future work, on the basis of the issues and suggested roadmap outlined in the CIDS report.
The meeting adopted the format of UNCITRAL expert group meetings, so participants were invited in their personal capacity as experts to contribute their views on the topic, with the understanding that the views expressed did not necessarily represent those of their Governments or organizations.