Lawyers at City firm Herbert Smith have helped Eurotunnel become the first company to win arbitration proceedings against two western European states simultaneously.


A team from the firm's London and Paris offices acted for the Channel Tunnel operator in its dispute with the United Kingdom and France over the Sangatte migrants' hostel.



Eurotunnel had complained that the hostel's proximity to the tunnel had acted as a magnet for asylum seekers and that business had been damaged by mass trespasses. It launched arbitration proceedings against both governments over the delay in resolving the situation.



Herbert Smith international arbitration partner Matthew Weiniger said: 'It was an absolutely fascinating case rooted in the front-page news story of the nightly invasion of Eurotunnel's terminal in Calais by desperate asylum seekers. The professional challenge lay in the differences in advocacy style, with the contrasting archetypal traditions of English common law and French civil law.'



Mr Weiniger added that the number of arbitration claims against states has increased significantly over the last decade, but that most actions are against developing countries. 'The tribunal in this instance had the courage to find liability against not just one, but two western states,' he said.



Jonathan Rayner