U.S. Judge Lets YPF Plaintiffs Use Confidential Evidence in World Bank Arbitration

Overview

• Judge Loretta Preska, who ruled Tuesday, authorized the YPF plaintiffs to take confidential discovery from the New York case into a potential arbitration at ICSID, the World Bank’s investor–state forum.
• Argentina’s Treasury attorneys said the order keeps the documents nonpublic and limits their use to the arbitration, preserving prior confidentiality protections.
• Burford has notified Argentina that it is moving the claim to ICSID, which would let the fund start the case with a large body of evidence already compiled.
• The shift to arbitration rests on the 1991 Argentina–Spain investment treaty, since the Petersen companies tied to the claim were incorporated in Spain.
• The Second Circuit voided the $16.1 billion trial judgment in late March, and the plaintiffs face a May 8 deadline to seek rehearing before any Supreme Court bid, while an ICSID path could add years due to a six‑month conciliation phase and lengthy proceedings.