The Burford fund requested the intervention of the World Bank tribunal after falling in the second instance. The Treasury Attorney's Office is already preparing the country's defense
The Burford fund, which financed the litigation against the Argentine State for the nationalization of YPF, has taken a new step after losing in the appeal stage. It filed a formal claim with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, the arbitration body of the World Bank, to intervene in the case and recognize the first-instance ruling.
This initial ruling had condemned Argentina to pay about 16 billion dollars plus interest for the expropriation of the oil company. The fund had already informed its shareholders that, in the event of a defeat in the appeal, it would turn to the ICSID to try to overturn the adverse result.
The decision is part of the strategy that the litigant has been announcing for some time. Meanwhile, at the end of the month, the deadline expires for the same fund to file a petition with the Supreme Court of the United States, another avenue that remains open alongside the request for international arbitration.
The National Treasury Attorney's Office received notification of the claim before the ICSID. According to reports, the claim was within the scenarios that the State's legal area had already contemplated, and now it will focus efforts on building a solid defense that achieves a favorable resolution for the country.
Lawsuit over YPF: the funds that lost initiated a lawsuit against Argentina before a World Bank tribunal
Deadlines and next steps in arbitration
From the filing, a 90-day period begins for the establishment of the arbitration tribunal that will decide on the fund's request. This body will be responsible for analyzing whether it is appropriate to intervene in the manner requested by Burford.
The case of the expropriation of YPF has been dragging on for more than a decade and has generated repeated legal disputes both in U.S. courts and in international instances. The defeat in the second instance represented a relative relief for public finances, although the fund's offensive keeps the uncertainty about the final amount it could claim open.
Official sources confirmed that the formal notification has already reached the Attorney's Office and that the technical team is working on preparing the arguments. The priority is to demonstrate that the appeal ruling should prevail and that it is not appropriate for the ICSID to reopen or reinterpret what has been resolved in U.S. courts.
The fund, for its part, argues that the World Bank tribunal has the authority to recognize the originally set amount and enforce its compliance. This position seeks to uphold the value of the litigation before its investors, who had bet on a multimillion-dollar compensation.
Economic impact and Government expectations
The Argentine defense focuses on reaffirming the validity of the second-instance ruling and questioning the appropriateness of a new arbitral intervention. Any recognition of the first-instance ruling would once again put on the table a figure that far exceeds the reserves and payment possibilities of the State in the short term.
In the Executive, they expect the ICSID tribunal to reject the request or, failing that, for the process to be delayed enough for other judicial instances to advance. The possibility of an appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States is also part of the calculation: if that highest court rejects the claim, the fund would lose one of the most direct avenues to enforce the original ruling.
Meanwhile, the Government is closely monitoring the evolution of the case. The notification from the ICSID did not surprise the technical teams, who had already prepared drafts of responses to this type of movement. The strategy aims to prevent the claim from turning into a new enforceable judgment.
The litigation over YPF has become one of the most burdensome disputes facing Argentina on the international stage. Each procedural step generates anticipation in both the financial market and regulatory bodies, as the outcome can influence the perception of country risk and future negotiations with creditors.
For now, the clock is ticking towards the formation of the arbitration tribunal. In the next three months, the composition of that body will be defined, and with it, the formal start of the procedure that the Burford fund hopes to use to try to regain ground after the defeat in the appeal. The State's position will be key in determining whether that offensive succeeds or not.
