earticle

영어

KORUS FTA provides for options of arbitration rules, one of which is the UNCITRAL arbitration rules. KORUS FTA has unique provisions on transparency of arbitral proceedings. However, other International Investment Agreements ("IIAs"), one of the parties to which Korea is, do not have such provisions. The UNCITRAL Working Group II has finished the third round of discussions on Draft Rules on Transparency ("TR") at its 58th session in February, 2013. TR is expected to be adopted at the next session of UNCITRAL to be held in July, 2013. During the discussions at the sessions of the UNCITRAL Working Group II, one of the most thorny issues is the scope of application of TR. Many delegations supported that the application of TR should be based on the so-called "opt-in approach" with regard to existing IIAs, while TR is automatically applicable to future treaties unless the disputing parties have ‘opted out’ of the application of TR. Other delegations proposed that TR should be applied following the evolutionary developments of Customary International Law in terms of treaty interpretation. With regard to other issues of transparency of arbitral proceedings, TR has provided for publication of information on arbitration commencement, automatic publication of documents on list, publication of and/or access to other unlisted documents, submission by a third persons, contents and format of amicus submission, non-disputing Party's submission on treaty interpretation, public hearings, exceptions to transparency, and the establishment of repository. In similar vein, KORUS FTA has provisions on publication of information on commencement of arbitration, written amicus submissions, submissions on treaty interpretation from non-disputing Party, and public hearings. Under KORUS FTA, however, there is no facility like repository as proposed in the context of TR. Under TR, a repository is to take an important role of disseminating transparency through keeping information or documents on treaty-based investor -state arbitration initiated under the UNCITRAL arbitration rules, or making such information or documents available to the public. As for Korea, the issue of the application of TR to existing treaties does not look very difficult to handle. The proposed repository is sure to contribute expanding access to information and documents which is beneficial to scholars and practitioners in Korea. Hopefully, the Korean Government may not resist the concept of good governance which might be enhanced by increased transparency in a treaty-based investor-state arbitration.

한국어

한미 FTA에서는 투자조약중재 방식을 규정하면서 UNCITRAL 중재규칙을 포함하여 여러 가지 중재 규칙을 선택할 수 있도록 하였다. 우리나라가 당사국인 국제투자조약 중에서 유일하게 한미 FTA는 중재절차의 투명성에 관한 규정을 두고 있다. 2013년 2월 제58차 회의에서 UNCITRAL 중재실무작업 반은 투명성 규칙 초안의 세 번째 검토를 마감하였다. 이제 투명성 규칙은 올 7월로 예정된 UNCITRAL 본회의의 토론을 거쳐서 채택될 예정이다. 그 동안 중재실무작업반 회의에서 가장 논란이 많았던 것은 투명성 규칙을 기존의 투자조약에도 적 용할 것인지의 여부였다. 이외에도 중재개시 정보의 공개, 문서의 공개, 제3자의 서면 입장 제출, 비 분쟁당사국의 서면 입장 제출, 중재 심리의 공개, 투명성 예외 사유, 그리고 투자조약 중재 관련 각종 전자문서의 수집과 게시를 담당할 등록기관의 설치가 논의되었다. UNCITRAL이 투명성 규칙을 채택하면 투자조약중재와 관련해서 투명성 규칙이 적용될 경우가 많아 질 것이다. 우리나라의 경우 투명성 규칙을 적극 받아들인다면 투자조약중재와 관련해서 국내 연구 자나 실무자들이 새로운 투자조약중재 사건을 대비하는데 큰 도움이 될 것으로 보인다. 투명성규칙 의 채택에 대해서 우리나라 정부가 부정적인 시각을 갖지 않기를 기대해 본다.