Argentina's post-2001 economy and the 2014 default

•We study the economic policy that lead to the default in 2014.•We study the pari passu clause as related to the ruling against Argentina.•The ruling against Argentina was not unfair.

With two sovereign debt defaults within the last thirteen years, Argentina represents an interesting example of the causes and effects of defaults by sovereign states. Argentina has had a history of economic strife for the last one hundred years, largely due to political and economic instability. This paper discusses the economics of Argentina after the 2001 financial crisis that led to the default in 2014. The paper also explains the main legal aspects for the holdouts versus the Argentina trial over the pari passu controversy and discusses the different reactions to the trial and consequent default.