The Clean Hands Doctrine as a General Principle of International Law

Abstract

The question of the scope and application of the doctrine of clean hands by investment tribunals is controversial. This article examines how scholars, international courts and tribunals and investment tribunals have analysed the concept. I will show that while the doctrine has rarely been used by international tribunals, they have nonetheless recognised and applied the clean hands doctrine in several awards. I will critically assess the reasoning of the Yukos award and, most importantly, the recent South American Silver Limited award, which have both held that the clean hands doctrine is not a general principle of law. I will argue, like many writers, that the doctrine should be considered as a general principle of international law. The article examines this concept and describes how such principles emerge on the international plane in a manner different from general principles grounded in the domestic laws of States.