Continental Casualty Co. v. Argentine Republic
Tribunal of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes
I.C.S.I.D. Case No. ARB/03/9 (Sept. 5, 2008)
Continental Casualty's (plaintiff) Argentine subsidiary held dollar-based assets that were harmed by Argentine emergency laws requiring conversion of dollar deposits into pesos and restricting investment transfers abroad; Continental sued Argentina (defendant) for breaching the fair-and-equitable-treatment standard in the Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT), and Argentina invoked Article XI's necessity exception, arguing the measures were necessary to address its economic crisis, while Continental argued Argentina had other, less burdensome measures available that it should have tried first.
Whether, under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, breaches of treaty standards are permitted for necessary measures to maintain public order or protect significant national interests, which may include measures that were not absolutely indispensable.