On 29 April 2026, the Rio Course on Regional and International Dispute Settlement (Rio CRIDS) was honored to welcome Prof. Lauro Gama, Adjunct Professor of Private International Law, Contracts and International Commercial Arbitration at PUC-Rio. The course is held by the FGV Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence, co-funded by the European Union under the Erasmus+ programme and directed by Prof. Paula Wojcikiewicz Almeida.

In the lecture “ESG, Energy Transition, Construction & Dispute Settlement”, moderated by Prof. Paula Wojcikiewicz Almeida, Prof. Lauro Gama inquired whether contract law and international commercial arbitration are equipped to handle the next generation of construction and energy disputes. Despite the wide recognition of ESG commitments, they are not always tangible and are evolving by nature, so their scope and meaning may be questioned when translated into contractual language. The volume of energy disputes at specialized fora and arbitrations involving renewable energy projects and sustainable construction has grown since the Paris Agreement (2015) and accelerated with the European energy crisis of 2021-2022.

Prof. Gama conducted his class according to three axes. The first one discussed the need to distinguish between disputes arising from the sustainability transition, which are contractual in nature, and those caused by the transition itself. Conflating these categories leads to misidentifying the applicable legal framework, the competent forum, and the available remedies. The second axis explored the inherent tension between contractual stability and regulatory adaptability for long-term energy and construction contracts, and to what extent an environmental regulatory shock constitutes hardship, force majeure, or a risk allocated to the parties. The third one analyzed the incorporation of ESG obligations as representations and warranties into commercial contracts, which allows for breaches of ESG standards to give rise to contractual liability independently of project outcomes.

We warmly thank Prof. Gama for sharing his knowledge with us on this timely topic. We look forward to further collaboration.