国际投资仲裁中“不洁之手原则”的适用——从Littop等诉乌克兰案切入

The Application of “Unclean Hands Doctrine” in International Investment Arbitration—Starting from Littop and Others v. Ukraine

摘要: 在2021年发布的Littop等诉乌克兰案最终裁决中，仲裁庭将“不洁之手原则”视为一般法律原则，并以投资存在腐败为由拒绝行使管辖权。仲裁庭的这一做法使“不洁之手原则”在国际投资仲裁领域的适用实现重大进展，但同时与其他投资仲裁案件的裁决产生鲜明分歧。此外，裁决中对于“不洁之手原则”是否属于一般法律原则的论证存有不足，将相近法律规则之适用视为“不洁之手原则”之适用的做法也有待进一步讨论。

Abstract: In Littop and others v. Ukraine, the tribunal concluded that “clean hands doctrine” exists as a general principle of international law, and denied its jurisdiction due to the investor’s unclean hands. This represents a significant advance in the application of the “unclean hands doctrine” in the field of international investment arbitration, but simultaneously creates a sharp divergence from other awards. Moreover, there is a weakness in the reasoning of whether the “unclean hands doctrine” is a general principle of law, and the legitimacy of treating application of similar rules of law as that of “unclean hands doctrine” is subject to further discus-sion.