Trade Agreements Investment Protection And Dispute Settlement In Latin America

In recent years many Latin American countries have liberalized their trade and investment regimes, opening their markets to free international trade. At the same time, regional economic integration has boomed. This book is the first systematic analysis in any language of these globally significant developments, and the first comprehensive legal study of dispute settlement relating to foreign direct investment and trade in the region. Undertaken by an expert in the field, this study describes the current institutional framework of Latin American trade and investment law as well as specialized legal issues in the region's various economic blocs. Among the many issues and topics raised the following may be mentioned: • questions of compliance and procedure in the context of today's international investment regime; • formalized dispute settlement mechanisms; • alternative dispute resolution channels, including dispute prevention practices; • legitimacy and transparency of the various dispute settlement mechanisms; • inclusion of social clauses in trade and investment agreements; and • avoidance of investment treaty liability. In order to offer a most accurate view of the effectiveness of the protection granted to foreign investors, special attention is given to relevant case law – completely covering the period 1985–2015 – as well as arbitral precedents before international bodies and in jurisdictions across the region. The book concludes with a critical examination of the future prospects of international economic law dispute settlement in the Americas, pinpointing current trends and unveiling future possible avenues for change. As an in-depth explication of how the rules and principles of international economic law are applied in Latin America, this book has no peers. For practitioners drafting business agreements with Latin American companies, or needing to ensure availability of appropriate remedies, this book's detailed insight into international litigation in the region, including case law illustrating the main topics, will prove to be of immeasurable value. Professionals in the arbitral community worldwide, as well as governments, dedicated research centres and officials in international organizations will welcome this book's model for comparative integration studies, systematic guidance on procedure and case law of domestic and international courts and arbitral tribunals, and extensive treatment of dispute settlement mechanisms in trade and investment agreements.

Latin American Investment Protections provides a unique country-by-country discussion of legal protections and dispute resolution/arbitration relating to foreign investment in Latin America, including applicable national laws, international treaties, stabilization regimes and known investor-State disputes.

This book analyzes the investment chapter of a new type of trade agreement between Canada and the European Union to help readers gain a better understanding of this mega-regional deal, which includes foreign investment protection. It first provides background information on the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), particularly focusing on the chapter on foreign investment, including the rules on the entry of investments, their protection and the stringent dispute settlement mechanism. It goes on to explore whether these provisions are a further step toward reforming the current international investment law regime. It also examines the highly innovative part of the agreement: the inclusion of crosscutting issues, such as sustainable development. In addition, it examines the CETA investment chapter from the perspective of non-contracting parties, including Africa, Asia and Latin America. The book is of interest to academics and students in the field of international investment law. It is also an essential resource for government legal advisers, policymakers, business practitioners, and others dealing with international investment law.

For the first time, all the most important Latin American economic integration programs are explored in the same volume in English: the Latin American Integration System (ALADI); MERCOSUR; the Andean Community; the G-3 Accord between Colombia, Venezuela, and Mexico; and the Central American Integration System (SICA). Latin American Trade Agreements explains how all of these sub-regional programs operate and where the opportunities are for foreign direct investors and exporters. It provides concrete examples of companies using the integration projects as part of their strategic business planning for Latin America. It also discusses the many opportunities available in transportation infrastructure develop-ment and intra-Latin American logistics. The Appendices include English translations of the trade agreements and important rules and regulations. Latin American Trade Agreements not only focuses on the rules for trade in goods and services, but also examines how the sub-regional projects and each member state treat subjects as diverse as environmental protection, intellectual property rights, foreign direct investment, as well as labor and tax laws. This looseleaf is an asset to lawyers, trade specialists, and international strategic planners.

Updated and Expended This single volume title is structured on an institution-by-institution basis, rather than as a country-by-country guide. This allows for an unprecedented level of accessibility - currently unavailable elsewhere. This title offers a unique consolidated overview of Latin America's institutions and their dispute resolution procedures. This incomparable book explains in clear English the different dispute resolution procedures of which companies and their counsel can take advantage in the course of doing business. The author pays close attention to the underlying treaties and protocols, some of which are not available in English. Among the many valuable resources provided are the following: an overview of regional and sub-regional institutions relevant to international dispute resolution description of other institutions which provide investment guarantee protection and dispute resolution services, including the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and its sister institutions insight into the way each institution is structured and how each legislates for its member states analysis of substantive and procedural rights available to investors and states under the rules of each institution rules of operation of supra-national/sitting courts and ad hoc tribunals, including the Inter-American Commission and Court of Human Rights, the Inter-American Commercial Arbitration Commission (IACAC), the Andean Court of Justice, the Caribbean Court of Justice, Mercosur's established arbitral tribunals and Permanent Review Tribunal, and the Central American Court of Justice analysis of major Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), including the Group of Three Agreement, the US-CAFTA-DR, and the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) investment protection afforded by Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) and Free Trade Agreements, with a country-by-country compendium of the BITs and FTAs signed by each Especially valuable coverage includes information that has been dispersed and difficult to locate in English, such as details of MIGA's dispute mediation service and recent changes in Central American Common Market rules.

This volume analyzes trade agreements in Latin America since the mid-1980s, and provides a theoretical framework that highlights the political-economic tradeoffs entailed in different trade strategies formulated and pursued by different countries in the region. It contains detailed, empirically grounded studies of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and the Mercosur block as a whole.

Latin American and Caribbean Trade Agreements: Keys to a Prosperous Community of the Americas is the essential reference guide for companies trading with Latin America and the Caribbean or wishing to use a country in the region as an export platform. This work fills the void in academic texts that are used to teach courses on economic integration in the Western Hemisphere. It provides a road map for the Obama Administration to launch an ambitious project designed to encourage economic growth, promote energy security, and reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions, while at the same time realistically meeting the development needs of Latin America and the Caribbean. Latin American and Caribbean Trade Agreements: Keys to a Prosperous Community of the Americas posits that the myopic focus of past United States administrations on free markets to spur economic development in the Western Hemisphere is not enough. A bolder and more ambitious project that also seeks to redress many of the deep-seated problems that have long plagued the region is required. The Community of the Americas proposed in this book rests upon the important work that has already been done at the sub-regional level in terms of economic and political reform, identifying infrastructure and human capital needs, and regulating migration. It provides a new and cohesive vision for U.S. policy in Latin America and the Caribbean.