Frank Emmert- Prof. Dr. LL.M., FCIArb
- Professor (Full) at Indiana University Indianapolis
Frank Emmert
- Prof. Dr. LL.M., FCIArb
- Professor (Full) at Indiana University Indianapolis
Check out projects at https://www.cilpnet.com/
See also https://www.frankemmert.com/
About
211
Publications
263,156
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257
Citations
Introduction
Working on:
1) An Open Source Textbook on International Investment Law (https://www.cilpnet.com/copy-of-open-source-textbook-1)
2) a special issue of the European Journal of Law Reform on Artificial Intelligence and the Law
3) an international research project on Aid Effectiveness (https://www.cilpnet.com/about-3)
4) an article on state aid to private industry in the United States
5) an article on "better-than-stable" cryptocurrencies and their use cases in Islamic finance
Current institution
Additional affiliations
June 2003 - present
Indiana University Indianapolis
Position
- John S. Grimes Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Int'l and Comparative Law
Description
- Coordinating activities in int'l & comparative law, w/focus on bus. & trade law, teaching 5-6 courses/year, supervising LL.M. and SJD theses, and directing Master of Laws (LL.M.) tracks in Int'l & Comparative Law, as well as World Trade Law.
August 2019 - present
Position
- Professor (Adjunct)
Description
- Teaching International Business Transactions to advanced JD and LLM students during the fall semester.
July 2002 - April 2003
Position
- Professor
Description
- Teaching and research in international business transactions, European Union law, int'l & comparative IP protection...
Publications
Publications (211)
The article discusses first the differences between market economic models, socialist or planned economies, and economies controlled by monopolies or cartels, to make the case for competition supervision. Subsequently it argues for a broad approach to competition supervision - beyond a narrow view of antitrust law. The second part of the paper disc...
Fiat currencies are structured to grow in volume but decline in value, necessitating interest or high profits in loan transactions to counteract the diminishing time value of money. Meanwhile, many conventional banks epitomize capitalism's excesses, prioritizing profit maximization and high-risk strategies, relying on taxpayer-funded bailouts when...
European Journal of Law Reform 2023, Special Issue on Blockchain Regulation, pp. 27-122
On Friday, May 16, 2025, Prof. Frank Emmert and the Center for International and Comparative Law at the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law hosted the 2nd Annual Blockchain PowerChat. While the 1st event on April 12, 2024, was an in-person conference with more than a dozen speakers, the 2nd event was conducted online to facilitate t...
1 Introduction1 As new technologies emerge, they offer various opportunities for businesses, and solutions to real-world problems. In such cases, business developers, app developers, and investors need guidance from regulators. This guidance should not only provide a snapshot of what is currently allowed but also reliable information on what will b...
The Country Report USA explains the legal background in U.S. Federal law, and in the laws of the Several States, with regard to public subsidies for private enterprises.1 That Report shows that neither the Federal Government, nor the governments of many of the Several States, let alone any of the municipal governments in those States, face serious...
Traditional fiat currencies managed by governments and central banks have had negative impacts on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals. Central banks in mature democracies pursue policies that prioritize economic growth and high employment. However, these policies often lead to inflation, eroding the savings and pension funds of averag...
Traditional currencies are parochial and designed to lose value over time. This costs users billions every year in currency exchange- and transaction fees, and makes it all but impossible to lend money without interest or some substitute fee, or to save money over time without losing value.
Digital currencies can be customized to meet the needs of...
The United States usually approaches questions of Private International Law (PIL) quite differently from the rest of the world, in particular the Europeans, who have developed and refined the field for decades in a more collaborative and internationally coordinated way. First, problems such as choice of law or forum and the recognition and enforcem...
Conventional or "fiat" currencies are designed to grow in volume and decline in value over time, creating the need to charge interest or super-competitive profits for loan transactions, to account for the diminishing time value of money.
Islamic finance models so far cannot avoid the diminishing time value of money. To
avoid interest, the construct...
Investment law provides strong protection to investors and their investments, including climate-unfriendly high-emission investment projects.
Increasingly, countries willing to take drastic steps in favor of environmental protection are encountering a problem with investment protections in favor of energy producers and other investors in the carbon...
Among the most fundamental principles governing international law and international relations are the sovereign equality of states and the principle of non-intervention in the domestic affairs of other states. These principles have, at times, been more or less restrictively interpreted, but they make it clear that the authorities of one state need...
The presentation outlines how Islamic Finance is struggling with interest free lending and often resorts to complicated constructs that are less efficient and less transparent for the borrower and - in the form of fees and other charges - de facto still include interest. This is almost inevitable if loans are paid out in fiat currencies, which are...
12 Point Analysis Regarding Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Regulation:
1. The storm is coming, whether we like it or not.
2. What is "money"? Is cryptocurrency money?
3. What is Bitcoin?
4. How does Bitcoin work? How does the Bitcoin blockchain work? What is the point?
5. What about other cryptocurrencies? To what extent are they similar or differe...
The video explains the concept of sovereign risk ratings, essentially credit scores for countries, and how they affect the countries' access to loans and their attractiveness for foreign direct investment (FDI). We look at the rating agencies and their rating criteria and methodologies, and we look at ratings given to some 196 countries. We also ta...
In just 17 pages, I am explaining for young lawyers - students and practitioners alike - how to go about 1) Gathering and Understanding the Facts of a Case; 2) Identifying Binary Claims: Who Wants What from Whom and Why? (“5Ws”); 3) Finding All Applicable Rules for the Case; 4) Identifying the Claim Bases in the Applicable Rule(s); 5) Isolating the...
Among the most fundamental principles governing international law and international relations are the sovereign equality of states, and the principle of non-intervention in the domestic affairs of other states. These principles have at times been somewhat more or less restrictively interpreted but they make it clear that the authorities of one stat...
Traditional fiat currencies, and the ways they are managed by governments and central banks, have been a defining feature of our capitalist economies. Unfortunately, fiat money and traditional monetary policy have been harmful to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) objectives.
In mature democracies, central banks are independent and obligat...
Bitcoin, the first digital currency running on a Blockchain, was introduced in 2008. The coin remained largely a project for technology geeks and a couple of speculators until serious buying and selling began in 2012-13. As soon as this happened, and Bitcoin was valued in dollars rather than cents, various authorities took notice. In spite of the c...
Whenever a new technology emerges and provides new opportunities for business and potentially new and different solutions for real-world problems, developers of the technology, developers of its business applications, and investors supporting the developers, are looking for guidance from regulators. Ideally, the guidance will be more than a snapsho...
Global trade in goods and services exceeds US$ 28 trillion annually. The U.S. is the world's largest trading nation, contributing almost US$ 6 trillion to the total volume. Some 30 cents of every dollar earned in the U.S. involves international trade.
The Covid19 pandemic, with its impact on global supply chains, and the more recent sanctions after...
Professors Andrea Bonomi, Matthias Lehmann, and Shaheeza Lalani are preparing a book on Blockchain and Private International Law with contributions from authors around the world. The Blockchain economy is distinctly international with suppliers often located in crypto-friendly jurisdictions like Malta, Estonia, Singapore, Switzerland, Bermuda, or t...
What regulators can learn from real estate developers: Open drafting competitions would yield better legislation, in particular for complex topics like crypto regulation!
On 1 April 2022, the Center for Intellectual Property Law and Innovation at the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law hosted this virtual symposium and I am pleased to share my presentation with you.
The Conference Speakers and Agenda:
9:00am - 9:05am Welcome Remarks: Professor Xuan-Thao Nguyen, Gerald L. Bepko Chair & Director IP Ce...
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), Blockchain businesses, and digital money or cryptocurrencies, have been hot topics for a while. Some see the solution to almost everything that is wrong with our traditional banks and financial institutions, others see Ponzi schemes, money laundering, and fraud.
The technology is by now thirteen years old and ha...
A presentation at the Institute for European Global Studies of Basle University (Switzerland) on 27 September 2021 about Blockchain regulation - past, present, and future - in Switzerland and the EU.
A presentation delivered at Tec de Monterrey for a workshop on Blockchain technology and Blockchain applications for commerce and industry.
The brand new edition of my book on IBT offers an innovative combination of textbook and casebook focusing on the practice of IBT law. The book contains important cases, dozens of model contracts, checklists for the analysis of complex problems, and flow charts for decision-making procedures. There are updated chapters covering contracts for the in...
These are four more chapters from my Casebook on EU Law.
This is another excerpt from my older publication with 100 leading cases on European Union Law (plus references and passages to many more decisions). Most of the cases in this book continue to be landmark cases that anybody studying EU law has to be familiar with. The format of the book is particularly conducive for understanding of the material. I...
This is an excerpt from an older publication with 100 leading cases on European Union Law (plus references and passages to many more decisions). Most of the cases in this book continue to be landmark cases that anybody studying EU law has to be familiar with. The format of the book is particularly conducive for understanding of the material. I have...
International investment law was born in a day and age when investors located in powerful and wealthy developed countries were looking for protection against expropriation and other arbitrary interference with their investments by undemocratic and unaccountable governments in developing countries. Bilateral and multilateral investment protection tr...
This is the published version and the one that should be cited.
International investment law was born in a day and age when investors located in powerful and wealthy developed countries were looking for protection against expropriation and other arbitrary interference with their investments by undemocratic and unaccountable governments in developi...
Trade financing-sometimes also called supply chain financing (SCF)-addresses three primary sets of questions. First, it is concerned with the transfer of the purchase price for a given set of goods or services. This secures the seller's right to get paid in time and in full and the buyer's right to receive the promised goods or services. Since buye...
This is a draft chapter for the upcoming 25th anniversary anthology of the International Legislative Drafting Institute at Tulane University.
I am examining why we are making so little progress in the promotion of rule of law around the world, and what should be done about it.
Diagnosis: At the beginning of the 21st century, probably for the first...
Online purchases and other online transactions have become ubiquitous. The emerging opportunities provided by Smart Contracts on the Blockchain will accelerate this development and add potential uses and business models that we cannot even imagine yet.
One of the challenges holding back the more widespread reliance on international transactions by...
This is the latest version of the Chapter on Sales Contracts. Remaining gaps will be filled in coming weeks. Feedback is welcome!
This is another update of Chapter One of the IBT Textbook. We are getting close to publication with this part...
This paper was presented at the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC) in Bangkok. The first part makes the argument that businesses in middle income countries like Thailand need to become more adept at using ADR since the courts in too many such countries are largely unable to deliver good dispute resolution mechanisms, producing fair d...
With the emerging wave of new-generation free trade agreements (both bilateral BITs and multilateral IIAs), investment arbitration has become one of the central issues of the contemporary discourse on international economic relations.
Critics argue that investment disputes are settled in the frame of intransparent arbitral proceedings devoid of any...
Originally developed for students on law review, working on a student note or shorter article in the field of comparative law, the presentation gives advice to anyone who wants to or has to publish in this area of law.
Topics covered include:
- What is "comparative law"?
- What is the comparative law "method"?
- What is the point of the exercise?
-...
This is a draft submitted for publication. In the first part, we discuss the growing crisis in investment arbitration caused by the traditional focus on protection of foreign investors and the neglect of public interest goals in the host country. We outline the lack of balance of interests and provide multiple examples where investors have prevaile...
You have to write a bachelor or master thesis in law? A student note or a research article for publication in a law review? Or maybe an entire doctoral dissertation? And nobody really taught you how to do that? Don't panic, help is on the way!
I have taught students for over 30 years how to write research papers from 20 to 200 pages and more. Every...
A presentation made at Blockchain Expo Global, London, on 18 April 2018.
Analyzes the binary relationships between the parties to a business transaction - for example a seller and a buyer - and the platform provider, where a Smart Contract on the Blockchain is being encoded - and discusses potential problems during
- contract formation
- performan...
The document introduces the International Smart Mediation and Arbitration Institute in Indianapolis, a newly created institution for alternative dispute resolution, i.e. the settlement of (commercial) disputes without resort to litigation (www.smartarb.org). The first section explains why SmartArb offers benefits for parties to an international bus...
Smart Contracts, problems during contract formation, performance problems, enforcement problems, and solutions offered via specialized Smart Mediation and Arbitration services.
This is an updated and expanded draft of Chapter 1 of my forthcoming book, now with 15 pages on how to analyze a case in an exam or in a legal brief.
Section 1: Definition of IBT and Scope of the Book
Section 2: The History and Motors of International Commerce
Section 3: The Legal Framework for IBTs - a To-Do List
Section 4: Different Levels of Leg...
In most cases, lawyers get involved in business transactions either at the beginning, when the transaction is being planned and the necessary contracts and other documents are being drafted, or at the end, after the transactions have gone wrong and the parties are going after each other for performance and/or damages. Obviously, it is much to be pr...
This is a draft of the Table of Contents of the forthcoming Documents collection. The Documents will accompany my Text, Cases, and Materials on International Business Transactions, forthcoming from Carolina Academic Press. There will also be a Teachers' Manual. The three volume set is intended for advanced graduate students and younger practitioner...
This is another draft chapter from my forthcoming textbook on IBT. It specifically teaches the analysis of cases and how to make persuasive arguments for their resolution. Since students and younger practitioners often struggle with these issues, I am making the draft available already now, although it will still go through several more rounds of e...
This is a preliminary draft of Chapter 1 of my upcoming Textbook with Carolina Academic. The Chapter deals with
Section 1: Definition of IBT and Scope of the Book
Section 2: The History and Motors of International Commerce
Section 3: The Legal Framework for IBTs - a To-Do List
Section 4: Different Levels of Rules Governing IBTs
I. International La...
While several regions in the world still don't have functioning supranational structures for the protection of human rights, Europe has two systems that are complementary in some ways and competing in others. The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg (France) is the guardian of the European Convention and the European Court of Justice in Lux...
The presentation was originally made in 2014 but has been updated in June 2017. It provides a brief introduction to CSR and then analyzes why the current proliferation of codes is harmful to the cause and why the recently adopted EU Directive on CSR reporting is ineffective. The presentation closes with suggestions what effective codes, standards,...
This is a presentation I have given many times. It has useful tips on how to be a good public speaker.
While this version is already refined, the presentation is work in progress and will be updated for each occasion. Your feedback can also help me in improving the presentation!
The presentation analyzes the recent turn against free trade in the US (WTO, NAFTA, TPP) and Europe (EU, CETA, TTIP) and its causes. It argues that populist resistance against free trade is not founded on facts but scapegoating and that a turn toward protectionism will hurt primarily those that are already perceiving themselves as victims or losers...
The presentation is about the possible and the likely scenarios for the negotiations between the UK and the EU for the implementation of Brexit.
This is the published transcript of the symposium presentations and discussion dealing with Brexit. My contribution analyses what the proponents of Brexit in the UK were hoping to get and what they are likely going to get out of Brexit.
The presentation addresses questions such as 1) what are the origins of different European contract law regimes? 2) what is "European" contract law today? 3) what has English common law contributed to "European" contract law? 4) Why is English law a popular choice in international business transactions, more so than the CISG, for example? 5) what w...
While some regions of the world still do not have supranational structures for the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, Europe has two systems that are competing on some levels and complementary on others. The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is the guardian of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Free...
Trade financing addresses three primary sets of questions. First, it is concerned with the transfer of the purchase price for a given set of goods or services. This secures the seller's right to get paid in time and in full and the buyer's right to receive the promised goods or services. Since buyer and seller generally don't meet face to face to e...
This is a preliminary and still quite incomplete draft of the chapter dealing with international commercial litigation and international commercial arbitration.
For the annual meeting of the CIArb North America Branch in Chicago on 1 December 2016, I was asked to prepare a small presentation on the Restatement of the U.S. Law of International Commercial Arbitration being prepared by the American Law Institute. This is an ongoing project and the various drafts are not publicly or at least not freely availab...
This is another work in progress, a preliminary draft of Chapter 2 of my upcoming Textbook with Carolina Academic. The Chapter deals with the main component of a documentary sale, the sales contract and some of the typical contracts and documents that may be signed on the way to its formation.
This is the Documents Collection to accompany the Casebook on EU Law by the same authors, available now from West Academic for law school classes beginning in the fall. It contains the founding treaties of the EU (as amended) and some 40 other important documents for the study of EU law. The editors have added article headlines to facilitate work w...
This is an updated and expanded version of the presentation given in 2015 and also available on ResearchGate. The key questions asked and answered are: Why do so few national systems provide fairness, predictability, impartiality, and effectiveness in the remedies before their courts? How can we make better use of available resources for our justic...
The presentation examines five crises in the EU at the end of 2015/beginning of 2016, namely the financial crisis (Greece etc), the situation with Russia and Ukraine, terrorism, the Syrian refugee crisis, and the British referendum on continued membership. The author suggests that each of the crises individually does not challenge the EU as such bu...
This is a draft of an article that will be published - after some editorial revision - in the Journal of Governance and Regulation. It discusses first the differences between market economic models, socialist or planned economies, and economies controlled by monopolies or cartels, to make the case for competition supervision. Subsequently it argues...
This is a chapter from a book I have been working on for a long time with many interruptions. The "Textbook" is intended to complement my Casebook and Documents Collection on EU Law. Due to my many other commitments and the constant changes in the EU, I have not made much progress on the Textbook in recent times. However, this chapter is reasonably...
This is another chapter from a book I have been working on for a long time with many interruptions. The "Textbook" is intended to complement my Casebook and Documents Collection on EU Law. Due to my many other commitments and the constant changes in the EU, I have not made much progress on the Textbook in recent times. However, at least the first p...
This is another draft chapter of my future textbook on EU Law. Same rules as for the previous chapters: please do not cite, in particular any parts that are unfinished or obviously outdated. Suggestions for improvements are most welcome!
... another chapter in my future EU Textbook. Please see my requests to readers as explained for the previous chapters. When using ideas or graphs, please give credit to this draft. Other parts are incomplete and may be outdated. They should not be cited and critical feedback or suggestions for improvement should be directed to me...
... another chapter in my future EU Textbook. Please see my requests to readers as explained for the previous chapters. When using ideas or graphs, please give credit to this draft. Other parts are incomplete and may be outdated. They should not be cited and critical feedback or suggestions for improvement should be directed to me...
A compact and inexpensive collection of all binding GATT and WTO Agreements and Understandings.
I recommend this model as the base for international sales contracts. It is short, concise, and covers all important points. There is no good reason for paying an attorney, in particular an American attorney, thousands of $$ for 60-80 pages of gibberish that try to re-write contract law while we have good sales laws in the UCC, CISG, or CFR that ca...
Using a case-study, I am illustrating issues related to choice of law and choice of forum in international sales contracts, in particular between the CISG and the UCC, and between seller's courts and arbitration.
A Powerpoint for a 4 hour workshop on how to write like an academic. I have delivered this presentation - or earlier versions of it - to hundreds of participants, from the level of undergraduate students, graduate and doctoral students, to the level of professors, and have received many thanks and congratulations from every single group. I can guar...
This documents contains the first 150 pages from the new edition of my Documents Collection. Included are the TEU, TFEU, and the most important protocols annexed to the Treaties. As in the previous editions, the text includes my article headlines in [square brackets]. The Documents are up to date as of September 2015, including the changes required...
The paper supports the 2015 bailout for Greece in the amount of some 86 billion Euro but it also argues that all international lenders should take a haircut of some 33% to bring Greek debt to a more sustainable level and that the focus for the future should be more on rebuilding the Greek economy and less on austerity.
Why do so few national justice systems provide fairness, predictability & impartiality? What conditions are required to operate a successful system of justice? How can we make better use of available resources for the promotion of rule of law?
This is a preview of the forthcoming 4th edition of the well-established Casebook by Bermann/Goebel/Davey/Fox. The book will be published in time for courses this summer and fall. We are finishing page proofing etc during the month of April. You can contact me or any of the other authors or the publisher for any questions you may have regarding ass...
A short PowerPoint with some tips for advanced undergraduate and graduate students how to get on a career trajectory towards becoming a legal professional with a focus on international law, whether in a law firm, corporate environment, int'l organization, foreign service, NGO, or other setting.
A short PowerPoint summarizing the article I wrote with Sinisa Petrovic and published in the Fordham Int'l Law Journal in 2014.
Some reflections on how to and how not to do legislative drafting; and introduction to the measures adopted by the EU about quality of legislative drafting.
The presentation examines whether Swiss authorities can be indirectly bound by decisions of EU and EU Member State authorities in the context of Schengen and Dublin (migration, asylum). Although such binding effects would seem rare and limited, the field provides another example of the Swiss conundrum, being factually forced to apply EU law without...
Conference organized by the IU Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER), housed in the Institute for International Business, Indiana University Kelley School of Business. CIBER operates to help U.S. businesses compete successfully in the global marketplace. CIBER is a national resource center — one of only 33 such centers fu...
Questions
Questions (8)
The 2001 UN Convention on the Assignment of Receivables in International Trade attempts to provide uniform rules for receivables financing in international business transactions. In the absence of a convention, the governing law would be national law. This gets messy in international transactions because seller and buyer are typically in different countries and the financing party may be in yet another country. Thus, it is not clear which rules apply to which part of the financing transaction and different national rules may be in conflict with each other. Some countries still restrict future receivables from serving as collateral for financing, other countries require specification and/or notification that is impractical in the reality of business.
The 2001 UN Convention provides both a measure of substantive law harmonization and conflict-of-law rules for other questions, i.e. it would regulate some aspects of receivables financing and tell us where to look for the answers to other issues. Unfortunately, it has so far been ratified only by Liberia and requires five ratifications to enter into force. Even if four more countries ratify and it does enter into force, it applies only if an assignment is made in a Contracting State (Article 1) and unless the EU MSs and the US ratify, this may rarely happen.
My question is whether the parties to a trade financing transaction, in particular the bank or other financing organization (assignee), can stipulate the applicability of the Convention by agreement and override any national law that would otherwise apply.
Thank you in advance!
