Dr Paolo Vargiu

Dr Paolo Vargiu is an Associate Professor at the Leicester Law School, where he co-chairs the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee. He holds degrees from the Universities of Cagliari (JD), Nottingham (LLM and PhD) and Leicester (PGCHE). His research interests lie in the fields of public international law, law and religion, and arbitration.

Dr Vargiu has published extensively on matters of international investment law and arbitration, and is currently interested in the rights of minorities, the relationship between law and religion, and the connections between law and literature. Dr Vargiu is the Managing Editor of the Global Community Yearbook of International Law and Jurisprudence and of the Journal de Droit Transnational. He is also a member of the Editorial Board of the Yearbook of Socio-Economic Constitutions and of the Steering Committee of ORFECT (Observatory on Religious Freedom in the Jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights).

Monograph:

• Investment Arbitration’s Tightrope: Ethics, Power and Responsibility (Anthem Press, IGLP Rethinking Global Law and Policy Series, 2024) (in press).
  
  

Articles and Book Chapters:

• Down the Rabbit Hole of Investment Arbitration and Ethics, International Investment Law Journal, vol. 4, no. 2, 2024, p. 137-153.
• The Concept of "Reasonable Accommodation" as a Barrier to the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in International Law, Ordine Internazionale e Diritti Umani, vol. 4, p. 811-825, 2023.
• Is the UNSC Resolution No. 2664 (2022) on humanitarian exemption a paradigm shift for sanction regimes?, Peace & Security - Paix et Sécurité Internationales, vol. 11, p. 1-22, 2023 (with F. Seatzu).
• The Right to Vote of Persons With Disabilities and the Difficult Relationship Between the CRPD and the European Court of Human Rights, San Diego International Law Journal, vol. 24(2), p. 263-288, 2023 (with F. Seatzu).
• Could Belarus and Russia Be Suspended from the World Bank and EBRD?, Texas International Law Journal, vol. 58, p. 163-172, 2023 (with F. Seatzu).
• La protezione dei luoghi di culto nel diritto internazionale (The protection of places of worship in international law), Ephemerides Iuris Canonici, vol. 63, p. 185-203 (2023).
• Not Commercial after all: Perception and Reality of Third-Party Funding in International Investment Arbitration, Journal of World Investment and Trade, vol. 24, p. 487-500 (2023) (with D. Davitti).
• Les agences de notation de crédit et leurs activités de rating: un regard à travers le prisme du droit international public, Journal du Droit International (Clunet), vol. 149, p. 95-109, 2023 (with F. Seatzu).
• Langue and Parole of investment Law, International Journal for the Semiotics of Law - Revue internationale de Sémiotique juridique, vol. 36, 2023, pp. 293-312.
• AfCFTA’s adoption of WTO Dispute Resolution Rules and Procedures: a Decision to regret?, Transnational Dispute Management, vol. 20(1), 2023, p. 1-13 (with F. Seatzu).
• Law and Literature Approaches to International Adjudication, in H. Ruiz Fabri (ed.), Max Planck Encyclopedia of International Procedural Law (Oxford University Press, 2022).
• The Credit Rating Agency: an Emerging New Actor in International Law and Order?, Diritto del Commercio Internazionale, vol. 36(3), 2022, p. 617-633.
• Best Interest of the Child and International Investment Law, Questions of International Law, vol. 89, 2022, p. 29-48.
• Mugemangango v. Belgium: a questionable contribution to the de-politicization of post-electoral disputes in Europe, in Stefano Aru, Marco Betzu, Stefania Cecchini, Roberto Cherchi, Lorenzo Chieffi, Giovanni Coinu, Antonio D’Aloia, Andrea Deffenu, Gianmario Demuro, Gennaro Ferraiuolo, Fulvio Pastore, Ilenia Ruggiu, Sandro Staiano (eds.), Scritti in onore di Pietro Ciarlo (Edizioni Scientifiche Italiane, 2022), p. 821-839 (with F. Seatzu).
• Arbitrator’s Impartiality and Independence under the European Convention on Human Rights: Lessons from Beg v. Italy?, European Journal of Human Rights, vol. 4/5, 2022, p. 345-361 (with F. Seatzu).
• Three Views of a Secret: Missed Opportunities in the ECHR's Recent Case-Law on International Commercial Arbitration, The Italian Review of International and Comparative Law, vol. 2(1), 2022, p. 1-22 (with F. Seatzu).
• Downsizing Teaching: The Case for Seminars as the Backbone of Law Degrees, Asian Journal of Legal Education, vol. 9(1), 2022, p. 114–123.
• Minoranze religiose e diritto internazionale: una questione culturale, Il Diritto Ecclesiastico, vol. CXXXII, 1/2, 2021, p. 159-186
• La contradditoria natura del diritto alla libertà religiosa nel Patto internazionale sui diritti civili e politici e i suoi effetti sulla protezione delle minoranze religiose nel diritto internazionale, Ordine Internazionale e Diritti Umani, vol. 8(4), 2021, p. 973-989.
• Strange Bedfellows: Remarks on the Compatibility of Commercial Arbitration Principles with Maritime Arbitration, Transnational Dispute Management, vol. 18(1), 2021, p. 1-18 (with A. Cheevers and A. Cole).
• Foreign Investment Screening in Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece, in A. Moeberg, S. Hindelang (eds.), A Common European Law on Investment Screening (Springer, 2021), p. 117-137.
• Stakeholders of Investment Arbitration: establishing a dialogue among arbitrators, states, investors, academics and other actors in international investment law, in K. Fach Gomez (ed.), Private Actors in International Investment Law, Special Issue of the European Yearbook of International Economic Law (Springer, 2021), p. 5-25.
• Diritto e immaginazione: brevi cenni sul ruolo della dottrina nella costruzione della società post-pandemica, Il Diritto Ecclesiastico, vol. CXXXI, 1/2, 2020, p. 133-143.
• Pacific Alliance, in R. Wolfrum (ed.), Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law, (Oxford University Press, 2020) (with F. Seatzu).
• PRIME Finance, in R. Wolfrum (ed.), Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law, (Oxford University Press, 2019) (with F. Seatzu).
• Interpretation and Application of the New York Convention in the United Kingdom, in G. Bermann (ed.), Interpretation and Application of the New York Convention (Springer, 2017), p. 977-995 (with M. Ahmed).
• The Implementation of the Consumer ADR Directive in Italy, in P. Cortes (ed.), The New Regulatory Framework for Consumer Dispute Resolution (Oxford University Press, 2016), p. 209-226 (with P. Cortes and C. Pilia).
• Rethinking the Dualism of Regionalism vs. Universalism in the Light of the Sub-Saharan Experience with the Regulation of Foreign Investments, 2015 Hungarian Yearbook of International Law and European Law, 2016, p. 357-381 (with F. Seatzu).
• Africanizing Bilateral Investment Treaties ('BITs'): Some Case Studies and Future Prospects of a Pro-Active African Approach to International Investment, Connecticut Journal of International Law, vol. 30(2), 2015, p. 143-168 (with F. Seatzu).
• Bilateralism, Multilateralism and the Quest for a Multilateral Investment Agreement for Sub-Saharan African Countries, La Comunità Internazionale, vol. 69(3), 2014, p. 315-340 (with F. Seatzu).
• The Human Rights Dimension of UN Security Council Resolutions, in JR Carby-Hall (ed.), Essays on Human Rights: A Celebration of the Life of Dr. Janusz Kochanowski (Jus et Lex, 2014), p. 520-541 (with R. Deplano).
• Environmental Expropriation in International Investment Law, in T. Treves, F. Seatzu, S. Trevisanut (ed.), Foreign Investment, International Law and Common Concerns (Routledge, 2014), p. 213-238.
• When Investment Law Takes Over: Towards a New Legal Regime to Regulate Asia Pacific's Submarine Cable Boom, Chinese (Taiwan) Yearbook of International Law and Affairs, vol. 29, 2013, p. 1-24 (with F. Borgia).
• The Inuit Declaration on Sovereignty in the Arctic: Between the Right to Self-Determination and a New Concept of Sovereignty?, The Yearbook of Polar Law, vol. IV, 2012, p. 189-204 (with F. Borgia).
• From Advisory Opinions to Binding Decisions: The new Appeal Mechanism of the UN system of Administration of Justice, International Organizations Law Review, vol. 7(2), 2010, p. 261-275.
• Beyond Hallmarks and Formal Requirements: a “Jurisprudence Constante” on the Notion of Investment in the ICSID Convention, Journal of World Investment and Trade, vol. 10(5), 2009, p. 753-768 (2009).
• Cenni sulla protezione delle minoranze nazionali nel sistema delle Nazioni Unite, in R. Deplano (ed.), I diritti delle persone dentro e fuori i confini costituzionali, (Carocci, 2008), p. 56-61.

Dr Vargiu welcomes PhD proposals in the fields of law & religion, human rights and public international law.

LLB:

• Law and Religion (Module Convenor)
• International Law
• Jurisprudence
• International Commercial Arbitration (Module Convenor)

LLM:

• General Principles of Public International Law (Module Convenor)
• International Investment Law (Module Convenor)
• International Commercial Arbitration (Module Convenor)

Dr Vargiu welcomes enquiries on matters of public international law, international investment, law and religion, and human rights.

Dr Vargiu is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a member of the Italian Bar Association.