The lawsuit against the state of Ukraine regarding the investment dispute with Chinese investors of Motor Sich will be conducted by some of the world's most famous law firms connected with the American justice system, as was reported by the DCH group's website.
In early August, DCH announced the beginning of comprehensive cooperation on the joint improvement of the Ukrainian aircraft industry and, in particular, PJSC Motor Sich in Zaporizhzhia.
“Three leading international law firms, such as WilmerHale, DLA Piper and Bird & Bird, will represent the interests of Chinese investors of PJSC Motor Sich (partners of DCH Group in the development of the Ukrainian aircraft industry) in an investment dispute to recover damage for $3.5 billion from the state of Ukraine. In international arbitration, Arzinger law firm will be an advisor on Ukrainian law,” the DCH announcement stated.
According to the websites of these companies, they are the leaders in the field of international arbitration. In particular, there are many prominent lawyers among their partners, including former FBI Director Robert Mueller and Douglas Emhoff, the husband of Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris.
Gary Bourne, the Head of the WilmerHale International Arbitration Practice Group, deserves special attention. Mr. Bourne is widely recognized as a preeminent global authority figure in international commercial arbitration and international litigation. Most bilateral and multilateral intergovernmental agreements on investment and investor protection are based on his developments.
On September 4, Chinese investors of Motor Sich PJSC sent a Notice of Investment Dispute to the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine. In the document, they indicate that they regard the actions of the Ukrainian authorities regarding the assets of investors from China as "an attempt to expropriate their investments." This contradicts the 1992 Agreement between Ukraine and China on the Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investments.