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investor-state disputes | ISDS

Investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) refers to a way of handling conflicts under international investment agreements whereby companies from one party are allowed to sue the government of another party. This means they can file a complaint and seek compensation for damages. Many BITs and investment chapters of FTAs allow for this if the investor’s expectation of a profit has been negatively affected by some action that the host government took, such as changing a policy. The dispute is normally handled not in a public court but through a private abritration panel. The usual venues where these proceedings take place are the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (World Bank), the International Chamber of Commerce, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law or the International Court of Justice.

ISDS is a hot topic right now because it is being challenged very strongly by concerned citizens in the context of the EU-US TTIP negotiations, the TransPacific Partnership talks and the CETA deal between Canada and the EU.

Dutch Supreme Court rejects Russia’s final appeal in $50B Yukos case
5-Nov-2025 AP
The Dutch Supreme Court on Friday rejected a final appeal by Russia against a $50 billion arbitration award to former shareholders of Russian oil giant Yukos, who claimed Moscow deliberately bankrupted the company more than 20 years ago.
Resource disputes between investors and states hit 10-year high
3-Nov-2025 Reuters
Disagreements between governments and investors over resources are at a 10-year high, law firm DLA Piper said, driven by resource nationalism and growing competition between the US and China for critical minerals.
Climate and Environmental Governance: International investment rules can undermine environmental and climate protection
3-Nov-2025 The Edge Malaysia
The investor-state dispute settlement system, with its roots in colonialism and extractivism, is not fit for purpose in the 21st century because it prioritises the interests of foreign investors over the rights of states, human rights and the environment.
Panama wins canal expansion arbitration against Spanish company
3-Nov-2025 RTL
Panama’s government won a lawsuit against Spanish company Sacyr, officials said, after the firm claimed it was owed around $2.3 billion for its work expanding the Panama Canal.
Romania withdraws from the Energy Charter Treaty
30-Oct-2025 Energy World
The Government has approved a draft law approving Romania’s withdrawal from the Energy Charter Treaty.
S Alam files international arbitration claims over asset freeze: FT report
30-Oct-2025 The Daily Star
Mohammed Saiful Alam, founder and chairman of the controversial business conglomerate S Alam Group, has filed an international arbitration claim alleging that Dhaka’s asset recovery drive has cost his family’s business "hundreds of millions" of dollar.
Gulf trade deal could ‘lock in’ more rights for fossil fuel industry, campaigners warn
28-Oct-2025 Global Justice Now
UK government reported to be demanding corporate courts as a red line in deal with six Gulf countries.
OIC member states move to modernize investment agreement
28-Oct-2025 Zawya
Held the first meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Agreement on Promotion, Protection and Guarantee of Investments.
Ethiopia’s finance minister holds discussions with US treasury and state department officials
25-Oct-2025 ENA
UK mining case highlights impact of ISDS mechanism on climate action
22-Oct-2025 International Bar Association
In August, a Singapore-based investor filed a case against the UK government after the High Court in London quashed a proposal for a new coal mine on climate grounds.
Powerful anti-climate legal instrument could cost the UK billions
9-Oct-2025 E3G
In August 2025, for the second time in its history, the UK government was sued by a foreign investor under investor-state dispute settlement provisions, through the 1975 UK-Singapore bilateral investment treaty.
Portugal’s Galp takes step to start arbitration over Mozambique capital gains tax dispute
9-Oct-2025 Club of mozambique
Galp says it has formally notified the State of Mozambique of a dispute under the international reciprocal promotion and protection of investments.
From trade deal to corporate takeover: threats of lawsuit abuse in RCEP
7-Oct-2025 IBON International
This episode unpacks the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, world’s largest free trade agreement, and the dangerous push to insert the Investor-State Dispute Settlement mechanism into its investment chapter.
The corporate siege of Honduras: international arbitration demands, energy transition, and state sovereignty
3-Oct-2025 bilaterals.org
Between July 14 and 17, in the city of Choluteca (Honduras), more than 60 people from 20 local communities and representatives of national and international social movements gathered for the “Meeting of communities affected by energy projects in southern Honduras - Without human rights, there is no energy sovereignty.”
The international investment legal regime, climate change, and human rights: an overview
3-Oct-2025 CIEL
Fossil fuel companies alone have launched over 300 ISDS cases, seeking over $80 billion in damages for climate-related policies aimed at phasing out oil, gas, and coal.
ICSID caseload statistics 2025: key trends and insights
3-Oct-2025 Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer
ICSID has released its FY 2025 caseload statistics, unveiling new data on damages including the difference between damages claimed and damages awarded.
Indonesia-Canada CEPA is not the rules-based trade we need
2-Oct-2025 CCPA
Free trade deal is a gift to mining and fossil fuel companies but sidelines human rights and industrial development.
Clive Palmer’s multibillion-dollar claims make a mockery of a tribunal that allows foreign investors to challenge court decisions
1-Oct-2025 The Guardian
The billionaire’s last three cases are part of a growing global list from fossil fuel companies against government decisions to reduce carbon emissions.
AFTINET webinar: ISDS - Fossil fuel companies’ secret weapon against climate action and Clive Palmer case outcome
1-Oct-2025 AFTINET
With COP30 in Brazil around the corner and with the prospect of Australia co-hosting COP31 next year, a major threat to effective climate action continues to fly under the radar: Investor-State Dispute Settlement mechanisms in trade and investment agreements.
Will Canadian companies respond to widescale public dissent by threatening to sue?
30-Sep-2025 Common Frontiers
Tens of thousands of people took to the street in a nationwide strike opposing various Canadian-owned mining projects while the Canada-Ecuador Free Trade Agreement could be tabled any day now.