Klingler

Joseph Klingler

Partner
Washington, DC

I help sovereign States protect their interests in high-stakes public international law and international arbitration disputes.

A partner in the International Litigation & Arbitration department, Joseph Klingler has represented numerous sovereign States and State-owned entities across Latin America, Europe, East and South Asia, Africa, and the Middle East before the world's principal dispute resolution bodies. Joseph has argued before the International Court of Justice and inter-State and investor-State tribunals, including under the purview of the International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA).  He has extensive experience in a variety of industries, including mining, energy, shipping, banking, and waste management.

Joseph has published extensively on matters of international law, including through the Harvard International Law Journal and the American Society of International Law, and is an expert on treaty interpretation. He is the co-author of the 3rd edition of Oxford University Press’ volume Treaty Interpretation (2026), the world’s leading treatise on the subject, and lectures at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva and other universities around the world.

Clients reporting to Chambers have described Joseph as "outstanding," and handling "every complex issue with a genius mind." Joseph has been named by Legal 500 as a key lawyer in its Dispute Resolution: International Arbitration publication, in the context of which he was described as "one of the rising stars of the firm’s practice."

Lexology Index highlights Joseph as a Future Leader-Partner, with clients and peers praising him as “an excellent arbitration lawyer who always thinks outside the box, considering all angles to complex legal issues” and for combining “incredible legal knowledge with a calm approach to managing complex and high-pressure situations," and “sharp analysis with common sense and practical application."

Joseph received a JD from Harvard Law School, where he graduated magna cum laude, and has a Masters degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.

Related Industries

Related Practices

Education

  • Harvard Law School, J.D., magna cum laude, 2014
  • The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, MALD, 2014
  • Loyola University, B.A., summa cum laude, 2005

Bar and Court Admissions

BAR ADMISSIONS
  • District of Columbia
  • New York

Languages

  • German

Experience

STATE-TO-STATE EXPERIENCE
  • Application of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Armenia v. Azerbaijan and Azerbaijan v. Armenia). Counsel to Armenia in proceedings before the International Court of Justice arising from allegations of breach of the CERD. Secured critical victories for Armenia on the Parties’ requests for provisional measures.
  • Azerbaijan v. Armenia (Energy Charter Treaty). Counsel to Armenia in proceedings brought by Azerbaijan under the Energy Charter Treaty.
  • Azerbaijan v. Armenia (Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats). Counsel to Armenia in proceedings brought by Azerbaijan under the Bern Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats.
  • Application of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Qatar v. UAE). Counsel to the State of Qatar before the International Court of Justice with respect to claims arising from breaches of the ICERD by the UAE.
  • Appeal Relating to the Jurisdiction of the ICAO Council under Article 84 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation (Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates v. Qatar) & Appeal Relating to the Jurisdiction of the ICAO Council under Article II, Section 2, of the 1944 International Air Services Transit Agreement (Bahrain, Egypt and United Arab Emirates v. Qatar). Counsel to Qatar in proceedings before the International Court of Justice constituting appeals against decisions as to the jurisdiction and competence of the Council of International Civil Aviation Organization. The Court unanimously rejected the appeals.
  • The State of Qatar and the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Kingdom of Bahrain, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (2017) – Application (A); and, the State of Qatar and the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Kingdom of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (2017) – Application (B). Counsel to Qatar in proceedings before the Council of International Civil Aviation Organization arising from certain aviation measures adopted by Respondents since June 2017.
  • Counsel to Qatar in arbitration proceedings initiated against Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE under the auspices of the Universal Postal Union.
  • Legal Consequences of the Separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965. Advised Mauritius in advisory proceedings before the International Court of Justice concerning the completion of the decolonization process. 
  • Philippines v. China. Represented the Philippines in an arbitration pursuant to Annex VII of the United Nations Convention Law of the Sea regarding maritime jurisdiction. The Tribunal rejected China’s claim to “historic rights” in the maritime areas encompassed by its so-called “nine-dashed line” as inconsistent with the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, and found that China violated the Philippines' sovereign rights under the Convention.
  • Costa Rica v. Nicaragua. Conducted research on behalf of Nicaragua in a maritime boundary delimitation case against Costa Rica before the ICJ.
INVESTOR-STATE EXPERIENCE
  • Walnort Finance Limited v. Republic of Armenia. Counsel to Armenia in a dispute before ICSID under the Armenia-Cyprus bilateral investment treaty.
  • Olayan Financing Company (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) v. The State of Qatar. Counsel to The State of Qatar in a dispute in the real estate sector before the PCA under the Agreement on Promotion, Protection and Guarantee of Investments amongst the Member States of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference. 
  • Amulsar Investor Ventures LLC v. Republic of Armenia. Counsel to Armenia in a mining dispute under the Armenia-US bilateral investment treaty and the 1976 UNCITRAL Rules.
  • RWE AG and RWE Eemshaven Holding II BV v. Kingdom of the Netherlands. Counsel to the Netherlands in its first ICSID arbitration under the Energy Charter Treaty concerning the phase out of Claimants’ two coal power plants by the state’s climate change legislation.
  • Sanitek S.a.r.l., Sari Haddad and Elias Doumet v. Republic of Armenia. Counsel to Armenia in an ICSID arbitration under the Armenia-Lebanon bilateral investment treaty in a dispute concerning waste management services.
  • Counsel to India in a confidential arbitration under the UNCITRAL Rules relating to taxation matters.
  • Ritika Mehta, Vinita Agarwal, and Prenay Agarwal v. the Oriental Republic of Uruguay. UNCITRAL arbitration before the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA). Counsel to Uruguay in an arbitration brought under the Uruguay-UK BIT, involving a large-scale iron ore mining project, which the claimants allege to be worth $3.47 billion.
  • Niko Resources v. Bapex and Petrobangla. Counsel to two Bangladeshi State entities in two ICSID arbitrations concerning the causes and impacts of two gas blowouts
  • City-State v. Ukraine. Counsel to Ukraine in an ICSID arbitration under the Ukraine - Netherlands investment promotion and protection treaty relating to the financial sector.
  • Louis Dreyfus Armateurs SAS (France) v. The Republic of India. Counsel to India in an arbitration brought under the France-India bilateral investment treaty before the Permanent Court of Arbitration.
  • Merck Sharpe & Dohme (I.A.) v. The Republic of Ecuador. Helped advise the Republic of Ecuador in an UNCITRAL arbitration under the Ecuador - U.S. bilateral investment treaty. 

Other Publications

  • Treaty Interpretation (3d ed.), Oxford University Press (forthcoming) (with R. Gardiner). 
  • “Is the U.S. in Breach of the ICJ’s Provisional Measures Order in Alleged Violations of the 1955 Treaty of Amity?” American Society of International Law Insights (May 26, 2020) (with T. Sepehri Far & B. Barnes) 
  • “Bankswitch Ghana Ltd (Ghana) v Republic of Ghana acting as the Government of Ghana (PCA Case No. 2011-10)”, ICSID REPORTS, Vol. 18 (with C. Salonidis) (2020) 
  • “Arbitrating Arbitrability in the United States: The Incorporation of Institutional Rules into Bilateral Investment Treaties and the Consequences for Challenges to Recognition and Enforcement of Awards under the New York Convention” [in:] 60 Years of the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (Wolters Kluwer, forthcoming) (with D. Smith) 
  • Canons and Other Principles of Interpretation in Public International Law (co-editor with Y. Parkhomenko and C. Salonidis) (Wolters Kluwer, forthcoming)
  • “Expressio Unius Est Exclusio Alterius” [in:] J. Klingler, Y. Parkhomenko & C. Salonidis (eds.) Canons and Other Principles of Interpretation in Public International Law (Wolters Kluwer, forthcoming)
  • Reflective Loss and its Limits Under International Investment Law in C. Beharry (ed) CONTEMPORARY AND EMERGING ISSUES ON THE LAW OF DAMAGES AND VALUATION IN INTERNATIONAL INVESTMENT ARBITRATION, Brill Nijhoff (2018) (with M. Clodfelter)
  • “International Courts,” International Legal Developments Year in Review: 2016
  • “Iran, Nuclear Weapons, and International Law: What Might the Final Agreement Add?” ASIL Insights (June 19, 2015) 
  • NOTE: "Counterintervention on Behalf of the Syrian Opposition? An Illustration of the Need for Greater Clarity in the Law," Summer 2014, Harvard International Law Journal, 55 Harv. Int'l L.J. 483 
  • “Human Rights and the Hidden Costs of International Sporting Events,” Harvard International Law Journal Digest (March 2, 2014) 
  • “Iranian Basij Enters Into Human Rights Dialogue,” Harvard International Law Journal Digest (Feb. 7, 2014)
  • “Spain’s Not-Fully-Universal ‘Universal Jurisdiction’ Statute Still Causing Diplomatic Headaches,” Harvard International Law Journal Digest (Dec. 4, 2013) 
  • “What the Standoff Over Chemical Weapons in Syria Says About Article 2(4)’s Prohibition of the Threat of Military Force,” Harvard International Law Journal Digest (Nov. 11, 2013) 

Honors & Involvement

HONORS
  • Fulbright Fellow, 2006-2007 (Germany) 
  • Salzburg-Cutler Fellow, 2013

Events

Speaking Engagements

  • Panelist, US Central Asia Forum: “Powering tomorrow today: How to maximize Central Asia’s critical minerals potential,” The Atlantic Council, June 2025
  • Panelist, “Incidental Proceedings Before the ICJ: Enforcing International Law or Exposing its Limits,” American Society of International Law, October 2024
  • Panelist, “Law & Governance in Cultural Heritage,” The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, February 2023
  • Panelist, "Coercive Diplomacy in the Skies: Dispute Resolution Mechanisms and Legal Remedies for States," International Law Association, October 2022
  • Panelist, 2013 American Society of International Law mid-year meeting and research forum.

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