In Reshaping the Investor-State Dispute Settlement System: Journeys for the 21st Century, editors Jean E. Kalicki and Anna Joubin-Bret offer for the first time a broad compendium of practical suggestions for reform of the current system of resolving international investment treaty disputes. The increase in cases against States and their challenge to public policy measures has generated a strong debate, usually framed by complaints about a perceived lack of legitimacy, consistency and predictability. While some ideas have been proposed for improvement, there has never before been a book systematically focusing on constructive paths forward. This volume features 38 chapters by almost 50 leading contributors, all offering concrete proposals to improve the ISDS system for the 21st century.
A significant increase in investor-State arbitration cases has been observed since the 2000s. The trust placed by investors and States in this method of dispute resolution stems from several strengths. In addition to its neutrality, one of the primary reasons for its widespread use is its adaptability, enabling it to address specific challenges that have emerged in recent decades. The following elements highlight this adaptability: the arbitration procedure can be customised to meet the specific needs of the disputing parties and stakeholders involved. It effectively responds to evolving cultural norms and ethical considerations, such as diversity, gender representation, corporate social responsibility, environmental issues, and human rights. Moreover, it can adapt to global health crises by facilitating online hearings. Finally, during times of international armed conflict, economic exchanges, trade, investment, and investor-State dispute settlement foster economic integration and interdependence, contributing to maintaining commercial peace and supporting international peace and security. However, investor-State arbitration has sparked vigorous debates, with many advocating for reform in three crucial aspects: transparency, legitimacy, and consistency. Multilateral negotiations are currently underway on various fronts, including the negotiation of more sustainable investment treaties, amendments to institutional arbitral rules, the design of a multilateral investment court, and the development of enhanced policy frameworks. This book delves into the history of investor-State dispute resolution to provide readers with an understanding of how its main features have evolved over time. It examines the most intensely debated procedural issues, analyses their multifaceted characteristics, reviews the complex relationship between investor-State arbitration and the European Union, and explores potential options for addressing stakeholder concerns.
This thought-provoking book combines analysis of international commercial and investment treaty arbitration in order to examine how they have been framed by the twin tensions of ‘in/formalisation’ and ‘glocalisation’. Taking a comparative approach, the book focuses on Australia and Japan in their attempts to become regional hubs for international arbitration and dispute resolution services in the increasingly influential Asia-Pacific context as well as a global context.
This open access book presents the scientific views of some fifty experts on how they believe the COVID-19 pandemic is currently affecting society, and how it will continue to do so in the years to come. Using the concept of a “common” (in the sense of common values, common places, common goods, and common sense), they elaborate on the transition from an Old Common to a New Common. In carefully crafted chapters, the authors address expected shifts in major fields like health, education, finance, business, work, and citizenship, applying concepts from law, psychology, economics, sociology, religious studies, and computer science to do so. Many of the authors anticipate an acceleration of the digital transformation in the forthcoming years, but at the same time, they argue that a successful shift to a new common can only be achieved by re-evaluating life on our planet, strengthening resilience at an individual level, and assuming more responsibility at a societal level.
As the proverbial workhorse of international economic law, investment arbitration is heavily relied upon around the globe. It has to cope with the demands of increasingly complex proceedings. At the same time, investment arbitration has come under close public scrutiny in the midst of heated political debate. Both of these factors have led to the field of investment protection being subject to continuous changes. Therefore, it presents an abundance of challenges in its interpretation and application. While these challenges are often deeply rooted in the doctrinal foundations of international law, they similarly surface during live arbitral proceedings. International Challenges in Investment Arbitration serves not only as a collection of recently debated issues in investment law; it also deals with the underlying fundamental questions at the intersection of investment arbitration and international law. The book is the product of the 1st Bucerius Law Journal Conference on International Investment Law & Arbitration. It combines the current state of knowledge, new perspectives on the topic as well as practical issues and will be of interest to researchers, academics and practitioners in the fields of international investment law, international economic law, regulation and comparative law.
With the growth of the global economy over the past two decades, foreign direct investment (FDI) laws, at both the national and international levels, have undergone rapid development in order to strengthen the protection standards for foreign investors. In terms of international investment law, a network of international investment agreements has arisen as a way to address FDI growth. FDI backlash, reflective of more restrictive regulation, has also emerged. The Evolving International Investment Regime analyzes the existing challenges to the international investment regime, and addresses these challenges going forward. It also examines the dynamics of the international regime, as well as a broader view of the changing global economic reality both in the United States and in other countries. The content for the book is a compendium of articles by leading thinkers, originating from the International Investment Conference "What's New in International Investment Law and Policy?"
The past two decades have seen a rising wave of investor-State arbitrations, which pose important questions in international law. This book addresses one of the least understood and most unpredictable areas in that field - the assessment of damages. The book is a result of a two-year research project carried out at the British Institute of International and Comparative Law, and it is the first to examine the subject in a systematic, comprehensive, and detailed manner. Damages in International Investment Law offers a much-needed, balanced assessment of the complicated and controversial issues arising in relation to compensation awards, putting special emphasis on the interpretation and application of international rules on damages by arbitral tribunals. In addition to careful analyses of the most recent investment treaty case law, other relevant practice - both international and national - is reviewed. Thorough, well-organized, and supplemented by analytical annexes, the book will be a valuable reference tool for legal professionals and a practical aide for constructing and resolving damages claims in investment arbitrations.
Arbitration is the normal and preferred mode for resolving international commercial disputes. It presents an essential advantage over national courts by offering neutrality of adjudication, but is currently only available where both parties have consented to it. This innovative book proposes a fundamental rethink of this assumption and argues that arbitration should become the default mode of resolution in international commercial disputes.
Traditionally, international investment law was conceptualised as a set of norms aiming to ensure good governance for foreign investors, in exchange for their capital and know-how. However, the more recent narratives postulate that investment treaties and investor–state arbitration can lead to better governance not just for foreign investors but also for host state communities. Investment treaty law can arguably foster good governance by holding host governments liable for a failure to ensure transparency, stability, predictability and consistency in their dealings with foreign investors. The recent proliferation of such narratives in investment treaty practice, arbitral awards and academic literature raises questions as to their juridical, conceptual and empirical underpinnings. What has propelled good governance from a set of normative ideals to enforceable treaty standards? Does international investment law possess the necessary characteristics to inspire changes at the national level? How do host states respond to investment treaty law? The overarching objective of this monograph is to unpack existing assumptions concerning the effects of international investment law on host states. By combining doctrinal, empirical, comparative analysis and unveiling the emerging 'nationally felt' responses to international investment norms, the book aims to facilitate a more informed understanding of the present contours and the nature of the interplay between international investment norms and national realities.
