Investment Treaty Law

International investment law is in a state of evolution. With the advent of investor-State arbitration in the latter part of the twentieth century - and its exponential growth over the last decade - new levels of complexity, uncertainty and substantive expansion are emerging. States continue to enter into investment treaties and the number of investor-State arbitration claims continues to rise. At the same time, the various participants in investment treaty arbitration are faced with increasingly difficult issues concerning the fundamental character of the investment treaty regime, the role of the actors in international investment law, the new significance of procedure in the settlement of disputes and the emergence of cross-cutting issues. Bringing together established scholars and practitioners, as well as members of a new generation of international investment lawyers, this volume examines these developments and provides a balanced assessment of the challenges being faced in the field.

The Investment Treaty Forum of the British Institute of International and Comparative Law brings together eminent practitioners, arbitrators, and academics in the dynamic area of international investment law. Members of the Forum, under the British Institute's auspices, examine and debate the legal and policy issues presented by the increasingly complex web of investment treaties and the disputes that arise under them. The Forum held two conferences in 2007. This present volume compiles the papers presented at the conferences, as well as a transcript of the round-table discussion on the subject of 'precedent' in international investment. Part I of the book is devoted to remedies, compensation, and valuation in international investment disputes. This under-theorized area of law is ripe for further exploration by lawyers and economists, and the papers in this volume present a framework for further inquiry. Part II addresses the jurisprudence emerging from investment arbitration tribunals on issues such as fair and equitable treatment, 'umbrella' clauses, and nationality of claimants. The overarching question addressed by the papers, and by the concluding roundtable, is the relationship of those decisions with general international law and whether or not there is, or should be, a doctrine of precedent in investment treaty arbitration.

In 2005, as part of its research activities in the field of investment treaty law and arbitration, the Investment Treaty Forum at the British Institute of International and Comparative Law organized two very successful public conferences in London addressing the issues of 'Nationality and Investment Treaty Claims' and 'Fair and Equitable Treatment in Investment Treaty Law.' This publication records the presentations given by very distinguished experts in the field. The first conference addressed a central issue in international law. Nationality sits at the heart of the debate over the rights and participation of private parties in international relations. In international investment law, nationality constitutes one of the central criteria defining the scope of application of international investment agreements such as the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) Convention or the several thousands bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and free trade agreements (FTAs). Topics addressed at the conference include the issue of nationality of physical and legal persons, the requirements for substantive and continuous nationality, as well as the issue of nationality in derivative actions and indirect claims. The second conference dealt with potentially the most important and elusive obligation imposed on States by international investment treaties: the fair and equitable treatment standard. The elements that are usually cited by the case law and by legal scholars in the attempt to describe the meaning of the fair and equitable treatment standard include very broad concepts that are open to differing interpretations depending fundamentally on the perceived objectives of the international investment system. Among the topics addressed at the conference were the application of the fair and equitable treatment standard in customary international law and in investment treaty practice; equivalent standards under domestic administrative law; the relationship between the fair and equitable standard and expropriation; and the relevance of the conduct of the investor in determining a breach of the fair and equitable treatment standard.

The book focuses on the substantive protections accorded to investors and investments and on the variations among jurisdictions. Among the many specific issues and topics that arise in the course of the discussion are the following: - problems of transparency and conflict of interest; - the recent growth in IIAs between and among developing nations; - the effect of new model bilateral investment treaties (BITs); - the ability of non-disputing parties to participate in investor-state arbitration; - theories of the interaction of foreign direct investment (FDI) and BITs; - investor-state arbitration as an evasion of public regulatory authority; - the role of investment funds in international investment; - 'fork in the road' provisions; and - institutional versus ad hoc arbitration. International business and other investors will greatly appreciate the in-depth information and insightful guidance in this solidly useful book. It will also be welcomed by jurists and students as a significant milestone in the development of principles in a quickly growing field of practice that is still plagued with inconsistencies.

Transnational investment involves a variety of actors (States, public and private legal entities, and natural persons) whose relationships are governed by rules and legal instruments belonging to different legal systems. This book provides a systematic study of the sources of rights and obligations in the field of transnational investment, and their coordination and interaction. It focuses primarily on the network of over 3,000 Bilateral Investment Treaties, international investment contracts, customary international law, the main multilateral treaties, national legislation, international case law and general principles of law. The book, firmly based on State practice, arbitral awards and national decisions, is indispensable to fully appraise the nature and content of the claims of private investors as well as to identify the law applicable in investment arbitration.

This book outlines the principles behind the international law of foreign investment. The main focus is on the law governed by bilateral and multilateral investment treaties. It traces the purpose, context, and evolution of the clauses and provisions characteristic of contemporary investment treaties, and analyses the case law, interpreting the issues raised by standard clauses. Particular consideration is given to broad treaty-rules whose understanding in practice has mainly been shaped by their interpretation and application by international tribunals. In addition, the book introduces the dispute settlement mechanisms for enforcing investment law, outlining the operation of Investor-State arbitration. Combining a systematic analytical study of the texts and principles underlying investment law with a jurisprudential analysis of the case law arising in international tribunals, this book offers an ideal introduction to the principles of international investment law and arbitration, for students, scholars, and practitioners alike.

Investment treaties grant special international protection to foreign investors, and give them a means to enforce those rights against States in which they have invested. This book systematically examines the law of international investment treaties, particularly with respect to its origins, structure, content, and effects. Although the precise provisions of investment treaties are not uniform, virtually all investment treaties address the same issues. This book examines those issues in detail, including the scope of application, conditions for the entry of foreign investment, and general standards of treatment of foreign investments. Investment treaty law has continued to evolve rapidly and dramatically since publication of the second edition of this work in 2015. The field has seen considerable growth in the number and scope of investment treaties, now estimated at 3300, and investor-state arbitrations cases, which reached over 1000 in 2020. The field has also experienced significant changes and reforms. In 2018, eleven Pacific Basin Countries, despite the withdrawal of the United States, forged ahead to conclude the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTTP), a potentially far reaching regional trade and investment agreement. The next year, the three north American nations replaced the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). And in 2020, European Union member states terminated over 100 intra-EU BITs, leaving intra-EU investors to rely on EU law and legal processes alone for protection from unfavourable government acts. This edition of The Law of Investment Treaties incorporates a consideration of all of these and other reforms into its analysis of the body of law created by investment treaties since World War II.

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.