Foley Hoag Helps the Dominican Republic Secure Dismissal of an Investment Treaty Claim Related to the Termination of a Waste Collection Concession
September 15, 2026
Foley Hoag's International Litigation & Arbitration Department has secured a complete victory for the Dominican Republic after an international tribunal constituted under the auspices of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) dismissed all claims brought against the Dominican Republic by French national Yves Martine Garnier.
Mr. Garnier initiated arbitration in late 2021 alleging that the termination of a waste management and collection contract between EGTT Dominicana, S.A. — a company owned by Yves Garnier — and the municipality of Santo Domingo Este amounted to an expropriation and breached the Fair and Equitable Treatment (FET) standard of the Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) between France and the Dominican Republic. Mr. Garnier sought more than US$100 million in compensation.
The Tribunal issued an award rejecting all claims on the merits, finding that the termination of the concession contract by the Municipality in September 2003 was justified under Dominican law and the terms of the contract. The Tribunal also found that the facts alleged by Mr. Garnier failed to establish a violation of the Dominican Republic’s obligations under the BIT.
The defense of the Dominican Republic was coordinated by the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and MSMEs (MICM), together with the Ministry of Justice and the Municipality of Santo Domingo Este.
The Foley Hoag team was led by partners Kenneth Figueroa and Ofilio Mayorga and included partners Gisela Paris and Constantinos Salonidis, international counsel Alberto Wray, and associates Andrés F. Esteban Tovar, Sun Young Hwang, and Luis Brugal with assistance from Camilo Caicedo, Daniella Juarez, Nancy Lopez, and Angélica Villagrán.
About Foley Hoag's International Litigation & Arbitration Department
Foley Hoag's International Litigation & Arbitration Department is recognized for its unparalleled experience representing sovereign States in high-stakes investment arbitration. The firm has been ranked Band 1 by Chambers Global in the Public International Law category for over a decade and is among the top firms in International Arbitration in Global Arbitration Review's GAR30, as well as Chambers Global, Chambers USA, Chambers Latin America, and Chambers Africa, and Legal 500 USA and Legal 500 Latin America.
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