On Wednesday 30 May 2012, Herbert Smith hosted a webinar focussing on some of the legal implications of the escalating Eurozone crisis, including the prospect of a Greek departure from the currency union (the Eurozone) and the remedies available for holders of Greek debt. Whilst the panel assumed that Greece was the departing State, many of the potential contentious issues would apply equally to any situation where a weak member departs the currency union but the euro survives. The session followed the successful seminar held in December which looked at economic challenges and legal risks brought about by the crisis as it stood then.
Herbert Smith’s legal panel covered this topic from several angles including EU law/withdrawal issues, private law obligations, sovereign debt, State immunity, Bilateral Investment Treaties (BIT) and claims under EU law for breach of treaty obligations by Greece. They also looked back at the Argentinian default to examine the parallels to the Eurozone crisis as a guide to what may ensue.
The publication sets out the key points that were made in the presentations and the discussion that followed. Please click here for an electronic copy and here to request a hard copy.