Outline Chambers Briefings | International Legal News

26 May 2026 Each week, Outline Chambers provides a concise overview of key developments across international law, arbitration and global governance.

This week’s briefing covers developments relating to human rights diplomacy, international criminal proceedings, international trade and emerging issues in digital asset litigation, highlighting the continued interaction between geopolitical developments, international legal institutions and evolving regulatory frameworks.

 22 May 2026

Human Rights: Joint letter calls for dialogue ahead of EU-China conference

A collection of human rights organisations has issued a public letter ahead of a summit between the European Union and the Republic of China. It calls on members of the European Parliament to raise human rights concerns.

The letter reportedly calls on and urges Members of European Parliament (“MEPs”) to challenge China’s so-called “ethnic Unity” law, investigate the fate of 40 Uyghurs that have been deported, and seek the release of political prisoners, inter alia.

Officially announced back in March, the EU Parliamentary delegation to China is the first in over eight years, and has been taking place in staggered phases. A meeting between 31 March to 2 April 2026 sought to address issues relating to digital and e-commerce between the two trade blocs, and another in Beijing on 12 May 2026 placed emphasis on industrial overcapacity, and China’s relationship to the war in Ukraine.

For more on this story, see here.

To read the letter, see here.

21 May 2026

International Criminal Law: ICC concludes confirmation of charges hearing in El Hishri case

It has been reported that the Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court (“ICC”) composed of Judge Iulia Antoanella motoc, sitting with Judges Reine Adélaïde, Sophie Alapini-Gansou, and María del Socorro Flores Liera, has completed a confirmation of charges hearing in the case of The Prosecutor v. Khaled Mohamed Ali El Hishri.

International Criminal practitioners will be well familiar that a confirmation of charges hearing is held to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to establish substantial grounds to believe that a suspect has committed the crimes with which they have been charged.

In the present matter, Mr El Hishri is alleged to have been one of the most senior officials of Mitiga Prison, where thousands of persons were detained for prolonged period. Mr El Hishri is suspected of 17 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes between 2014 and 2020.

For more on this story, see here.

20 May 2026

International Trade: UK Government signs trade deal with six gulf states

The United Kingdom has completed four years of talks to strike a £3.7bn trade deal with six gulf states.

The agreement – whose value is double original estimates - is expected to offer new opportunities for exporters in the food, luxury automobile, aerospace, and hospitality sectors amongst others.

The agreement has attracted support from local business associations. For example, the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) have reportedly described the agreement as a positive development since the UK’s departure from the European Union in respect to the preservation of Poultry standards.

Tariffs are expected to cease to apply to domestic exported where before they faced a blanket tariff of 5% for goods, if not higher. UK firms doing business in the region will have permission to store data externally for the first time.

For more on this story, see here.

19 May 2026

Cryptocurrencies: High Court Judgment adopts victim-focussed approach to civil fraud

A High Court decision concerning freezing orders in relation to civil fraud of crypto currencies back in February of this year has received renewed coverage this month.

In Smithers v ‘persons unknown’ [2026] EWHC 207 (Comm), the High Court continued an existing freezing order over cryptocurrency asset accounts linked to participants in an international fraud scheme, following the allegation that crypto currency assets had been misappropriated fraudulently.

In the present judgment, the matter returned to court after an initial freezing order had been granted. The issue was whether the order should be continued when the court had not been made aware that the initial order would have affected innocent parties in respect to the tracing methodology initially adopted.

Of note is the approach adopted by the Court in respect to jurisdiction. It was confirmed that the jurisdictional gateway tort in the Court’s practice direction PD 68.3.1.9 was satisfied on the basis that there was at least a good arguable case that damage was sustained in England and Wales, and was determinable on the basis of the location of the owner of the assets in question, with more technical debates about “location” rejected.

For more on this story, see here.

To read the judgment, see here.

18 May 2026

Blog Corner: “The Rise of ICSID Claims Against Sub-Saharan African States”

Between 2012 and 2021, a reported average of seven ICSID cases were filed against states in Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2025, a reported 15 cases alone were recorded.

A post written by Tunc Savas, and Chiara Schurich of Wilmer Hale for Kluwer Arbitration Blog, examines the trend increase of ICSID claims being issued against Sub-Saharan African States, and what those disputes involved. A useful analysis for arbitral practitioners with a focus and interest in the African region.

To read this article, see here.