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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.

OPL 245: Nigeria must resist Eni’s legal bullying, says group
19-Oct-2020 The Cable
The Human and Environmental Development Agenda, Re:Common, Global Witness, and Corner House, have called on the Nigerian government to stand against Eni’s legal move over the oil processing license (OPL) 245.
Orange begins legal proceedings against Iraq government
15-Oct-2020 Telecompaper
Orange Group has instituted legal proceedings against Iraq in an attempt to claw back more than USD 400 million in investments it alleges were expropriated by the country’s regulator.
Eni seeks World Bank arbitration in Nigeria oilfield dispute
14-Oct-2020 Reuters
Eni plans to argue that the country’s failure to allow it to exploit an oilfield it acquired with Royal Dutch Shell nearly a decade ago breaches their investment agreement.
Does investor protection increase foreign direct investment? A meta‐analysis
9-Oct-2020 Journal of Economic Surveys
74 studies find robust evidence that effect of international investment agreements on foreign direct investment is so small as to be considered zero.
Key international legal measures risk making the cost of green energy shift skyrocket
5-Oct-2020 IIED
A complex set of international legal measures protecting the fossil fuel industry risks significantly increasing the cost of moving to green energy and tackling climate change, a new report reveals.
Costs rise in Vattenfall lawsuit over German government’s nuclear phase-out
5-Oct-2020 Clean Energy Wire
The German government writes that around 21.7 million euros have been spent on lawyers, expert witnesses and court fees.
India to contest Vodafone arbitration judgement: Report
1-Oct-2020 Deccan Herald
The Indian government plans to contest the judgement on the Vodafone arbitration award in Hague.
Cairn seeks $1.4 bn damages from govt
30-Sep-2020 Live Mint
Cairn is seeking full restitution for losses resulting from the expropriation of its investments in India in 2014.
New bilateral treaties to keep tax disputes out of arbitration
30-Sep-2020 New Indian Express
India will try and keep its taxation laws out of the ambit of all Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) and comprehensive economic pacts that it negotiates.
Indiana lodges $95m claim against Tanzania
30-Sep-2020 Mining Weekly
Indiana Resources has lodged a $95-million compensation claim against the government of Tanzania over the "illegal expropriation” of the Ntaka Hill nickel project.
KURUM company sues Albanian state, seeks EUR 100 mln
28-Sep-2020 Albanian Daily News
KURUM company sued Albania at the International Court of Arbitration asking EUR 100 mln for termination of the contract of the container terminal in Durresi Harbor.
Vodafone  ruling may set precedent  for other cases
28-Sep-2020 livemint
Vodafone Group Plc’s big win against the Indian government could set a precedent for similar arbitration cases, including the one initiated by Cairn Energy Plc.
Vodafone wins international arbitration against India in $2 billion tax case
25-Sep-2020 Reuters
Vodafone won an international arbitration case against the Indian government, ending one of the most high-profile disputes in the country involving a $2 billion tax claim.
Ukraine renewables feed-in tariff reduction could lead to investor action
24-Sep-2020 Out-Law
Investors in renewable energy projects in Ukraine are considering legal action after feed-in tariffs for solar and onshore wind power plants were reduced retroactively to 2015, according to an expert.
PPPs and ISDS: A risky combination
23-Sep-2020 CCSI
It appears that investors are using investment treaties in ways that can significantly frustrate government efforts to effectively and adequately regulate public private partnerships in the public interest.
ICSID grants Pakistan six months stay order in Reko Diq case
18-Sep-2020 The News
The World Bank’s ICSID has granted Pakistan a stay order of six months in the Reko Diq case in which Islamabad was awarded with a whopping $6 billion fine.
Japan backs ISDS in fierce debate at Energy Charter Treaty review
17-Sep-2020 AFTINET
A written submission from Japan published by the ECT secretariat rejected language on the “right to regulate” and changes to the investor-state dispute resolution mechanism.
Hague court rules in favor of Chevron in dispute with Republic of Ecuador
17-Sep-2020 Nasdaq
The District Court of The Hague ruled in favor of Chevron in its dispute with the Republic of Ecuador, upholding a 2018 arbitral award rendered by an international tribunal administered by the Permanent Court of Arbitration.
Shaping future UK trade policy: investment protection provisions
16-Sep-2020 Trade Justice Movement
As the UK regains full responsibility for its trade and investment policy post-Brexit, it must seriously consider its approach to international investment protection.
Energy companies keep right to sue states in private courts, as treaty reforms blocked
16-Sep-2020 Climate Home News
Negotiators have ruled out an overhaul of private courts that allow energy companies to sue national governments when climate change policies hurt their profits.