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.
25-Mar-2016
The Conversation
Bilateral investment treaties have been a source of political controversy in recent years. This is clear from the alarming increase in the number of disputes between investors and governments.
22-Mar-2016
Both Ends
On the need to create sound policy frameworks for investment.
18-Mar-2016
AIDA
High-altitude wetlands that provide drinking water to more than two million people could become one of the world’s biggest gold and silver mines.
17-Mar-2016
IISD
Does the agreement reflect 21st century needs and standards?
17-Mar-2016
Earth Institute
A new report from the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment explores the dilemmas posed by land investments under international investment treaties and human rights law.
16-Mar-2016
CIEL
The Canadian company’s Angostura mining project in the high-altitude wetlands, or páramo, of Santurbán, has announced that it could file an international arbitration suit against Colombia over measures to protect the páramo, which are important sources of water in the country.
15-Mar-2016
IISD
The legality of investor–state dispute settlement (ISDS), including in the form of an Investment Court System (ICS), in EU trade agreements under EU law is a contentious issue among academics and legal experts.
13-Mar-2016
Alternautas
The Oxy II awards subvert the notion of sovereignty: by whom and how a country’s natural resources are used becomes a minor question as long as wealth is maximised.
10-Mar-2016
EurActiv
Progress was made in the latest round of TTIP talks, but negotiators have a long way to go if the deal is to be signed before Barack Obama leaves office.
10-Mar-2016
Rabble
More than 2,000 people marched in Lima, Peru in opposition to the government’s plan to privatize public water services.
9-Mar-2016
EurActiv
Paris would like to “copy-paste” key passages from the EU-Canada free trade agreement, concluded this week, particularly those relating to the arbitration court that is such a controversial issue in Europe.
7-Mar-2016
The Globe and Mail
This is one of the problems with this regime of investor rights. It confers enormous discretion on an elite corps of lawyers.
7-Mar-2016
Todd N. Tucker
A research provides a set of pragmatic tools for governments on the receiving end of legal claims.
4-Mar-2016
Asia One
Singapore has moved quickly to sign an investment treaty with oil-rich Iran to support Singapore firms investing in an economy that is emerging after the recent lifting of global sanctions.
4-Mar-2016
Huffington Post
Corporations can still sue governments over public policy decisions they don’t like but the real lesson from the ISDS reforms, in fact, is that public opposition and political mobilization can change things.
1-Mar-2016
Public Services International
New report shows that trade and investment deals like RCEP will further adversely affect the ability of the government of India to tax corporations effectively and fairly.
1-Mar-2016
EU Observer
Despite all the talk of reform from commissioner Malmstroem, the threat to democratic decision-making is as alive and dangerous as ever.
1-Mar-2016
South Centre
In African countries, the expansion of international investment agreements could carry significant risks to policy space and policy tools necessary for industrialization and development.
29-Feb-2016
European Commission
The European Commission and the Canadian Government have agreed to include a new approach on investment protection and investment dispute settlement in CETA.
29-Feb-2016
Romania Journal
Brothers Viorel and Ioan Micula won the lawsuit against the Romanian state at the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), and were awarded USD 200 million in damages.
